The Catalyst
by TheGladElf
Summary: Set after Book 4 (and probably very quickly going to become AU). After everything with Kuvira settles, Korra and Mako are forced to decide what their relationship is going to be. Multi-chapter. Makorra.
1. Prologue: Making Mistakes

The start was a sting operation gone bad.

Korra thought she was done with the flashbacks. That she was back in full Korra mode. And she was. After everything, after dealing with Kuvira and saving the world yet again, Korra felt like her issues were behind her. For good.

So when Mako asked for her help, she said yes. It never occurred to her that the hallucinations would return in the middle of an attack. Someone jumped out at her from a dark alley, but Korra didn't see her attacker, not really. She saw herself again—she'd gone so long without seeing that tortured vision, if took her by surprise. Korra had frozen.

The next thing she knew, Mako was curled on the ground, arms wrapped around his torso, her attacker writhing as his clothes burned. Korra snapped out of it then, leaping into action along with half a dozen others. Fighting back the rest of the Triple Threats they'd ambushed and pulling Mako out of harm's way.

Once they retreated, Korra determined that Mako was mostly okay. Just a few cracked ribs, painful, but not life-threatening. She nearly suggested taking him to the hospital, but if she did that, the healers would force her to sit outside and wait. They would be separated.

One look at Mako's face told her that wasn't happening. Despite the obvious pain he was in, his eyes said he wasn't letting her out of his sight. Not after what had just happened. Korra felt the same way.

So instead, Korra took him back to his apartment. Bolin wasn't home. So Korra was on her own as she helped Mako remove his uniform jacket and undershirt before she got a bowl of water from the kitchen and set to mending his ribs. Korra had to concentrate to keep her hands steady, shushing him every time he tried to ask about what had happened.

Mako had almost been killed because of her.

"Better?" she asked when his face started to relax. At last.

Mako nodded. His eyelids drooped. Gently, Korra prodded his ribs. Satisfied when he didn't wince, she pulled his arm over her shoulders.

"Come on," she said. "Let's get you to bed."

Mako followed her to his room, crashing face first on the mattress. Korra pulled his boots off legs that were hanging over the edge. _Spirits,_ she thought as she shoved him all the way on the bed, _Mako is heavier than he looks_.

Korra briefly toyed with the idea of heading back to the island, despite the late hour. Pema would worry if she didn't come home.

Healing Mako had left her drained, however. A long time ago, she might have tried to power through it, but her stamina still suffered from the Red Lotus' poisoning. Better to stay here, rather than being out on the street like this. Collapsing on the couch, Korra gave in to her heavy limbs and fell asleep.

# # #

The catalyst was a dream.

The night that she slept without dreams was rare. Sometimes they were Amon and losing her bending. Sometimes they were herself. Sometimes she killed her uncle again. Tonight, she dreamed of Zaheer.

Korra woke with a start, eyes opening to find Mako's startled face inches from her own. Something thick and heavy covered her, a blanket. At least this time, she hadn't been screaming.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you," he said, stepping back. He still wore the heavy duty pants from his uniform, though he'd found another undershirt. This one considerable more worn that the one he had on earlier. She thought it might be one from his probending days.

"It's okay," Korra replied. She sat up, rubbing at her eyes. "You did me a favor."

"Bad dreams?"

"Yeah."

Sitting next to her like he feared a wrong move would send her running out the door, he asked, "Kuvira?"

Korra took a breath in, letting it slide slowly through her lips. "Zaheer." Her voice still cracked. "I still have…issues sometimes."

"Is that why…" He didn't finish the sentence, but she knew what he was afraid to say. _Is that why you froze?_

Korra buried her face in her hands. "I am so sorry, Mako. I thought…After Kuvira…"

"Hey, it's okay." His hand rested on her shoulder. Half of it just pressure through the fabric of her shirt, half of it warmth against her cold skin. All of it sending fire dancing through her veins. "You patched me up. Everything's good."

"You almost died," Korra whispered.

The hand on her shoulder tightened. Korra lifted her head to find him watching her, those eyebrows nearly touching. Korra wanted to reach out and run her fingers over the thick black lines until they smoothed out. The room around them felt so cold. That didn't surprise her, she was pretty sure she was sucking all of the heat into her own body.

"You almost died," Mako repeated. The words were layered with pain and fear—not just from tonight—but from every time.

Korra got up. "Tenzin is going to wonder what happened to me. I shouldn't have fallen asleep." She couldn't do this. Not with them like this. Not when she was afraid to even touch him. Just looking at him, just thinking about earlier had adrenaline coursing through her veins again. They were in a good place. Maybe, with a little more time…

"Korra."

His hand closed around hers. When she turned, he was so, so close.

Mako took a breath and then he reached for her, his hand curling around the back of her neck as he pulled her forward. Korra didn't fight it. She didn't want to. Her hand had ripped out of his, mirroring her other hand gripping his shoulders through his thin shirt.

She didn't think as they stumbled towards his bedroom. She didn't pause as they collapsed on his bed, rolling and tangling and kissing like they'd never kissed before.

There was one brief moment of clarity, when Mako pushed her away, saying, "Korra, we shouldn't…"

Korra yielded, sitting back. Mako drew a hissing breath in through his teeth, eyes closing. Even through all the layers of their clothes, she could feel how they fit together perfectly. And more than ever, Korra wanted all those layers gone. With the look he was giving her, she knew it wouldn't take much coaxing to achieve that goal. She wanted to touch him and move against him and kiss him until he begged for her. However, Korra forced herself to be still, shoving her hands into her armpits.

"Do you want to stop?" she asked.

"No."

"Neither do I," she said. And then she reached for the hem of her shirt.

# # #

The worst part was waking up alone.

Korra couldn't believe she had screwed this up.

No, that wasn't right. They'd both had a hand in destroying what they'd built since her return.

After all that time feeling like she was pulling teeth and dealing with all the emotions that had been shoved away from three years, things had finally reached a sort of normalcy with them. He was approaching her for help with his job. He was comfortable helping her when she asked for help, no blushing or stuttering or cool guy act. They were friends again. Finally.

Well, last night had probably wrecked that. Mako was going to dial the awkward up to final championship level.

Korra swung her legs over the edge of the bed, surprised to find that she was sore. Ah well, she should have expected that. She picked up her bindings from where they lay discarded on the floor. Her shirt. Pants. Fur pelt. Where were her boots? There.

Korra pulled her boots on, glancing behind her at the bedside table. No note.

Had she expected one?

Aware of every creaky board in Mako's floor, Korra left the bedroom and headed for the front door.

"Korra?"

Korra whirled. "Mako! You—you're still here."

He stood in the kitchen doorway, a cup of coffee in his hand, dressed for work. She admitted silently that she did like the police uniform, though his normal jacket with its rolled-up sleeves still held its spot as her favorite. Mako disappeared back in the kitchen, coming out with another steaming mug of coffee.

It was a Nuktuk promo mug. Despite the tense atmosphere, Korra smiled.

"It's Bolin's."

Korra shrugged and took the mug, hoping that her face wasn't flaming as hotly as it felt like it was.

Mako sighed, sitting on the couch where it had all started and setting his coffee on the table in front of him.

"We should talk," he said.

"Yeah."

She remembered the last time they'd been like this. Mako sitting on the couch, her standing on the other side of the table. A different couch. A different table. A different time. Neither of them nearly as nice as the ones in front of her. Would this conversation go better than that one had? Korra wasn't sure, but she wanted to try. The last thing she wanted was for them to fall into old patterns again.

Already, she knew one thing she could change.

Korra crossed to the other side of the table, sitting next to Mako. To her utter relief, he did not jump away from her. Staring at the mug of coffee between her hands, she waited.

"Last night…" Mako scrubbed a hand over his face. "Korra, please don't take this the wrong way, but I think last night was a mistake."

"Me too."

"I'm not saying it wasn't—wait, you agree with me?"

Korra nodded, meeting his eyes. He stared at her, then his gaze softened and he took her hand.

"I think you and I have a pattern of rushing into things without thinking," he said. They both laughed at the gross understatement. "We get caught up and we don't…" Mako bit his lip.

"We don't make sure the foundation is strong."

Mako's eyes widened as he heard the words. They were from a conversation with Bolin. The two boys had thought she was napping, a façade she had carried off expertly when she realized they were talking about her. Bolin had grown to be surprisingly perceptive .

Mako let out a long breath. "I'm glad you get it."

He took the mug from her other hand before taking it in his.

"Korra, when we—ended things, I didn't think there was any way we could ever work, but since then, so much has changed. We've changed, and I wonder if maybe we just weren't ready and—" Mako looked away, lowering his voice. "You've become my closest friend, Korra. I couldn't say that before—even as much as I loved you."

_Always_. The word hangs between them. Three years. Three years of pushing her feelings to the side. Three years of having things that were simply more important. Somehow, though, even though she'd done her best to ignore her feelings, they grew.

"We are better at listening to each other," Korra pointed out. "And working through the difficult issues."

"That's putting it lightly." Face grim, Mako ran a hand through is hair, freeing it just a little. Still serious, but not as uptight. He should stick with that. "This could work. If we don't try to rush it again, that is. If this is what you want, of course."

Korra hooked a finger under his chin, bringing his eyes back to hers. "I do."

Mako blinked, "I—really?"

"Really."

He sighed, his forehead falling to her shoulder. Tears stinging her eyes, Korra leaned into him, her cheek resting against his short hair. She tried not to cringe. Definitely too much hair grease.

"I love you, Korra."

"And I love you," she whispered, without knowing why. It wasn't a secret. Everyone knew. The tabloids had yet to tire of splashing it across their front pages. It felt like a secret though.

"So…" Mako asked. "No more mistakes."

"This is us, Mako. We'll make mistakes, but no more last nights." Korra said. "From now on, I'll do my best to think things through if you will. We do things the right way this time." _We make things work this time._ She couldn't imagine her life if they didn't.

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Not the strained silence—well, not strained like it had been earlier. Korra was acutely aware of how close Mako was. Only the police uniform reminded her that no, kissing him right now was probably a bad idea.

"To be honest, I expected you to storm out the door at some point during this conversation," Mako said. "This apartment hasn't felt official without you slamming the door at least once."

Korra laughed. "If I slam it on my way out, will that do the trick?" She let go of him and reached for her coffee, taking a sip. Since they were being honest, she said, "I didn't expect you to be here, actually."

Mako jerked upright. "What? No, I would never have—" He stopped short, looking down at his uniform. "Well, I do have to leave for work in a few minutes, but I would have at least left a note. I'm not—I don't do that."

"Oh, so there have been other times you could have snuck off with a beautiful woman in your bed?"

Mako blushed. A gorgeous, bright red. "No. I just—I'm not—"

"I know," she said, kissing his cheek. Or that's what it was supposed to be.

As her mouth neared his clean shaven cheek, Mako turned his head, capturing her lips in a chaste kiss. The next kiss wasn't so chaste.

"Korra."

"I know," she said, pulling away from him. "I should go. Come for dinner tonight? You should bring Bolin."

Mako stood with her, straightening his uniform. "Sounds like a plan."

Korra headed for the door, pausing as she reached it. Mako hadn't moved from his spot by the couch.

She grinned. "Be safe today, okay?"

"Okay. You too."

Korra opened the door and then, winking at Mako, she left. The door cracked against the frame behind her. As she started down the stairs, Korra could hear Bolin screeching about robbers and death, while Mako laughed loudly enough to wake the neighbors.

It was all going to be alright.

* * *

><p><strong>So...this is probably the closest I will ever get to writing smut. Yeah. But for the story to go where I wanted it to go...Anyways, not my usual story. You'll see soon. Still I got this idea and I couldn't let it go.<strong>

**Can we just take a moment to talk about Mako and maturity?**

**People, Mako IS mature! He's a little clueless on the dating game, but he's spent his whole life taking care of his brother, so can you blame him?**

**Think about, this kid has been on the streets since he was eight. He had a six-year-old- to take care of that entire time. All of that would have fallen on Mako. Oh, Bolin would have helped as best he could, but as we saw in Book 1, Bolin's schemes tended to be a little more far-fetched. Yes, he screwed up in Book 2 with Asami and Korra, but honestly, I can see why he wouldn't want to be like, "Actually, we broke up and now I'm kind of back with Asami" in front of everyone. Should he have waited as long as he did? No. **

**And don't get me started on Book 1. There is a scene that was meant to be a break-up scene, but it is slightly ambiguous. That isn't Mako's fault. Bryke admits that they were a little two subtle.**

**In my mind, his biggest mistake was not asking Asami for space. Again, that is understandable. He is hurt. He's frustrated. Asami clearly wants him. He's an idiot, but that doesn't make him unworthy. It just makes him human. And nineteen. **

**Rant over.**

**Reviews are appreciated. Now I need to go edit the next chapter.**


	2. One: The Hard Path

It wasn't going to be alright.

Of course it wasn't going to be alright. She was the Avatar. Nothing was ever that easy for her.

Korra pulled her knees up to her chest, staring out at Yue Bay. She tried not to give in to the feeling that everything was ruined. She had felt like that before and it turned out okay. Even…but, this was ten times worse than eight weeks ago, though. There was no going back from this.

Had it really only been eight weeks?

Yes, it had. Korra was there, after all, when the healer counted the weeks from the date she'd given. A week ago. Only a week. It felt like forever.

Mako needed to know, but Korra still felt like she was reeling.

How was she supposed to tell him while she was still trying to sort through her own feelings? She still wasn't sure she'd processed it.

Time was going to start running out soon though. Just this morning, she'd noticed how her stomach, which had been flat for all of her adolescence, was starting to curve outward. Just slightly. She'd been getting dressed when she noticed it and her clothes still hid it well. Though she was glad winter was on them. Her parka would buy her a few extra weeks when it came to hiding it from the press.

It?

No, the baby. Her baby. Her and Mako's baby.

This changed everything.

Korra slipped a hand between her stomach and thighs. She was a watertribe healer. Trained by Katara and Kya. If Korra concentrated, she could feel the energy of any muscle and vein and organ in a person's body. It was harder with the baby, but it was there. Just like it had been there every time she'd checked.

Her little bundle of energy.

This terrified her, but Korra knew what she wanted. It wasn't going to be easy. It was probably going to be hell, what with her duties and the press and the scrutiny of everyone, but she was Avatar Korra of the Southern Water Tribe and she was the stubbornnest person she knew. Well, besides maybe Ikki when she got hung up on sone idea or other.

She would do this and all the naysayers could just deal with it.

Korra wasn't worried about them.

What terrified her was the reaction of the one person whose thoughts she most wanted to know.

They were doing so well—except for this last week. All week she'd been missing lunch dates and feigning tiredness when he came for dinner so he'd go home early. It was hard, being around him while she hid this secret, but she didn't know what else to do. Mako was nearly always there for dinner. The only nights he'd missed were the ones he was on shift and that one night a few weeks back when they finally decided to go on a real date.

They'd even managed to make it past their first big fight since she'd come back. Oh it had been difficult and Mako had stormed out claiming he needed some air. They were both still running a little hot when she tracked him down again, but the space gave both of them time to think. Before she could even open her mouth, Mako held up his hand.

"Let's just agree on one thing, right now," Mako said. "From here on out, us breaking up is not an option when we're arguing, okay? That way neither of us repeats old mistakes."

Korra had become unexpectedly teary at that, but she nodded. All the anger had drained out of her. It was probably just hormones, she realized later. She hated these hormones.

They'd gotten past it though and once that was settled, Korra had turned to him and asked, "So, does this mean we're together again?"

Mako just smiled, but three days later, he was taking her out to dinner at a real restaurant. A rather fancy restaurant—fancy enough, Korra knew he'd been planning this for a long time.

And now…

Now what?

How would he react? Watching him with the airbender children, she wasn't worried about him being a good father. Plus, look at Bolin. She was a lot less worried about Mako's abilities as a parent and a lot more worried about her own.

But did Mako even want kids? Maybe raising Bolin had turned him off to the whole idea. This wasn't the kind of thing you talked about when you were twenty-one and you'd only officially been back together for three weeks and things like marriage were still years away as far as you were concerned.

_Spirits_.

Would he want to marry her? Did she want to marry him?

It would make things easier for her. So much easier.

Still that was a huge decision. Mako loved her, she knew, but could she trust him with the rest of her life? One mistake wasn't a reason to spend the rest of her life with the wrong person…though, if Mako wasn't the right person, Korra didn't know if it was possible for anyone else to be right.

Thoughts crowded her brain. Korra tried to push them away. She hated it when her mind got like this. When every thought in her mind was negative. They crushed her, they made it hard to see the truth. And it all came back to one thought: What was she supposed to do?

"Korra?"

Electricity zinged down Korra's spine.

"Hey," she said. She let one leg dangle over the cliff edge, looping her hands around her knee. She glanced up at him and offered a smile. It felt too tight. He wasn't supposed to be here, she'd told him she wasn't feeling well.

"I thought I'd find you out here," Mako said, sitting next to her. He hadn't even stopped at home to change.

Korra nodded. "I wasn't expecting to see you today."

"I know." He rubbed at the back of his neck. "But Lin said she'd seen you today and she sounded worried." He put a hand on her shoulder. "She was right, you look beat." A heartbeat passed. "Korra? Are you okay?"

"What?"

"You're upset about something. I can tell."

And this was why you didn't date a damn detective. They noticed everything.

Korra opened her mouth to tell him, but, to her utter embarrassment, she burst into tears.

Mako sat back, surprised. "What's wrong?" he asked. "What happened?"

All Korra could do was cover her face and sob. Two heartbeats passed. His arm slid around her shoulders, meeting his other arm as he drew her into him.

"It'll be okay," he said. "I'm right here." That was all he said. Over and over. One hand moved in slow circles over her shoulder blades. Korra rested her head against his chest and didn't even try to hold anything back. She just cried.

Stupid hormones.

What felt like days later, Korra ran out of tears.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked.

Korra slipped her arms around his waist. If this was all going down like the walls of Ba Sing Se, she wanted to stay as close as she could for as long as she could.

Mako bided his time. What must he be thinking? Korra couldn't remember the last time he'd seen her cry like this. That day in the South Pole when she'd thought she was the last Avatar, maybe?

"Korra," Mako said. "Please tell me what's wrong." He tensed, like he was bracing for an impact.

"I'm pregnant."

"Oh." He took a sharp breath in. "_Oh_."

To her relief, Mako didn't immediately push her away. He didn't move at all. It wasn't the response she had hoped for. Which raised the question: what had she hoped for?

"I think—" He cleared his throat. "I think I need a minute, okay? This is…a lot."

"No kidding." Korra tried not to sound too sarcastic.

Korra was afraid to look at him as he let go. Not knowing was awful, but the possibility of seeing her fears justified was worse. His hand rested on her shoulder for a few moments, then he sighed, kissing her hair as he got up. Her heart clenched—if she had had any tears left, she might have started crying again.

"I'll be back in a minute, don't…don't go far, okay?"

"Okay."

Scooting back from the edge of the cliff, Korra curled into herself again, resting her forehead against her knees. This was, by far, the most complicated mess she had ever gotten herself into.

She lifted her head as the footsteps returned behind her, but she watched the probending arena instead of him.

"How long have you known?" He didn't sound angry, just shocked.

"For sure? A week."

"A week? Korra, why didn't you tell me?" Mako knelt next to her, even though she still wouldn't look at him. His gaze burned though. "You didn't have to deal with this on your own. Not for a minute."

"Yes. I did," Korra said. "How was I supposed tell you about this until I'd sorted out my own thoughts.?"

"And…how do you feel about it?"

"Scared," Korra said, resting her face in her palm. "And maybe a little bit awestruck."

"Yeah." Mako sighed. "Korra, I am so sorry. This is all my fault."

Korra whipped her head around. Her boyfriend was staring at his hands in his lap, she must have been too busy not looking at him to notice when he sat down again. Mako had donned out his extra-broody eyebrows for this occasion too.

She couldn't help herself. Korra laughed.

Mako looked offended.

"I'm sorry," she said, wiping at her eyes. "It's just here I was sitting up here thinking about how it was all my fault. And here you are blaming yourself, when really, we're both to blame."

That didn't get a grin, but it did dial the eyebrow intensity down a notch.

"Three years ago, we probably would have blamed each other," she said, sobering up. That was when she knew worrying about Mako had been ridiculous. The awful feeling she'd been carrying in her gut for the last week (which, was not morning sickness, she knew the difference) untwisted. Korra reached for his hand, their fingers lacing together effortlessly.

"Three years ago," Mako said, "I don't think we could have handled this."

Korra nodded.

Grass crunched beneath him as he scoot closer, putting his arm around her shoulders.

"Who else knows?" he asked, his voice soft.

"You. Me. The healer at the clinic," she said. That had been an interesting adventure. Trying to visit the health clinic without tipping the press off that she was there for herself. They might not have jumped to the correct conclusion, but it might have been among the theories that they'd concocted. "It's still early, so the fewer who know, the better. I don't want anyone making a fuss, in case the…situation resolves itself."

"Korra, are you thinking of…"

"I'm keeping it, Mako." The hardest option, but she'd faced harder, hadn't she?

Mako held her a little tighter. "Okay. I'm—" His breath hitched a little as he hesitated. "Will you be mad at me if I say I'm glad?"

"Nah." Korra leaned into him, closing her eyes as the bright sunset reflected off the waters. All those colors. It was one of her favorite things about this spot. When the sun was setting, it lit up every inch of the water, turning it pink and orange and red. Sometimes, Korra wondered if she shouldn't have been born a firebender—it came so naturally. Of course, then she wouldn't have been the Avatar. Another impossible thing she couldn't resent. "I can't say I'm terribly disappointed with my decision either. It'll be tough though."

"I know," Mako said. "But you're not alone, Korra. Whatever you want from me…whatever you need, I'm here."

The thought struck Korra as particularly funny, since he was currently holding her like he would if they were sitting with her parents. She grabbed his hand, pulling his arm from her shoulder to her waist. Mako stiffened as his hand brushed across her stomach and then his fingers spread, warm against the small bump that he probably couldn't even tell was there yet. The silence popped, no longer strained, though still heavy.

The sun was gone, by the time Mako spoke again. "How are you?"

Korra shrugged. "I'm fine."

"And what did the healer say about…the, um, baby?" He sounded a little like he used to when he took an earth disc to the stomach.

"She said it's got a strong energy, though it isn't defined enough to be able to tell much else just yet."

"Okay."

"Mako, what are you thinking?" Korra pulled away, so that she was kneeling in front of him. This time, he was the one avoiding her gaze. She grabbed his chin, bringing his eyes back to hers. "Hey, Cool Guy, whatever it is, you can tell me. I did kind of just drop an elephant-rhino on you."

When Korra first met Mako, the idea of him blushing seemed ridiculous. He was Mr. Cool Under Fire. The Unflusterable Mako of the Fire Ferrets. Now, though, she loved how easy it was to make him blush. And she loved that she was currently his most frequent reason for blushing.

"I was just—" Mako sighed, shifting his eyes, even though she still held his face. "Do you think we should get married?"

Korra sat back. Hadn't she just been thinking about the same thing?

Things would be so much easier for her if they were married before the baby came. Oh, there would be scandal no matter how they played this. Every newspaper in town was going to jump on the news once they found out, but the whispers would die down much quicker if there was a ring on her finger. She'd seen it happen with mover stars. The big question still remained: Did she see a relationship with Mako working in the long run?

Korra didn't know the answer to that question. Every time she tried to piece it together, her brain ground to a halt.

"I—I don't know," she said. "What do you want?"

"I want what you want, Korra."

"You're not scared of moving too fast?"

"Spirits, Korra, of course I'm scared. This is crazy and overwhelming and I'm not even sure it's sunk in yet. Everything is going to change, but I love you and if marrying you is what's right, then that's what I want to do." Mako met her eyes then. He pulled her into his lap, cupping her face with both his hands. "What I want—Korra, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I've wanted that for a long time."

"Really?" Korra swallowed. She had to know. "Since when?"

"It took me a while to realize," he said, "but I knew for sure after Zaheer nearly killed you."

Korra sucked in a breath. For three years? And he hadn't said anything?

"It was back before we knew if you would walk again." The mention of the dark weeks right after Zaheer's attack, when everyone had waited anxiously to see if any feeling would return to her legs, darkened Mako's face and wiped all mirth from Korra's.

His thumb caressed her cheek as he said, "I knew then that I wanted to see you grow old and I wanted to grow old beside you. Raise kids with you, see the world, watch our grand kids grow up. And I was so scared—you don't have to tell me that this is incredibly selfish, I already know—I was so scared that it wouldn't happen if you were never able to walk again.

"Because I knew you and I was sure you'd think I was only doing it out of pity." He leaned in until their foreheads were touching. She caught the ghost of a smile on his lips before his features blurred. "And if there is one thing you can't stand, it's someone else's pity."

"Lucky you, your girlfriend kicked that wheelchair to the curb."

"I never cared about the wheelchair," he said. "Not for one minute."

His words made her shiver. She knew that now, of course, even if she couldn't see it then. It was good to hear the words though. He pulled back, one finger tracing down her neck, over her collarbone, and stopping right above her heart—a heart which, coincidentally, pounded very loudly in Korra's ears.

"This is what I love and it has never changed."

"I know."

Korra kissed him, hands smoothing over his shoulders, her weight causing him to lean back a little. One arm wrapped around her, the other braced behind him. They were very good at easy, careful kissing now. After all, she and Mako were adults. They had self-control. So even though her pulse throbbed and the hand at her waist felt like it was burning through her clothes into her skin, Korra pulled away.

"I need to think about it. Okay?"

"Of course," Mako said, smiling up at her. The setting sun caught in his eyes, making the amber darken and flicker.

"Korra!" Ikki's sing-song voice echoed nearby.

Quickly, Korra and Mako stood, both of them very aware of how Tenzin would react if Ikki returned with a report of what he referred to as "funny business". Not that his ban of "funny business" between them while she was on his island really had much power now.

"Korra! Oh, and Mako. Mom says it's time for dinner. Are you coming?"

"And miss your mom's cooking? Of course not," Mako said, ruffling the young airbender's hair. He took Korra's hand and together they headed back inside.

* * *

><p><strong>Like I said, not my normal story. But I'm going somewhere with this, so...enjoy?<strong>

**In case you are wondering, since I don't really know where Bryke is going to end things with Mako and Korra, I've written this as though they end Book 4 in a sort of in-between, we definitely still love each other but we haven't really decided that we're dating phase. That's where they were in the Prologue. Obviously between then and now they'd made it official. **

**As always, I love hearing what your favorite parts are!**


	3. Two: Badly Handled

The morning started normal. Typical beat. Nice weather. Nothing for Mako to be worried about except doing his job. When his partner walked over to his bike to answer the radio, he wasn't expecting anything too big.

"That was headquarters," his partner said, "The chief is requesting back-up at Harmony Tower. Seems your girlfriend and some spirit are causing a ruckus."

Mako's stomach lurched. Korra was fighting a spirit? Why? Wasn't there someone else that could handle that? Bowing hastily to the woman they'd been interviewing, he shoved his logbook inside his jacket.

"Let's go," he said, swinging his leg over his bike. Siren wailing, Mako sped through downtown, his heartbeat keeping time with his flashing lights. The sick feeling he had to fight back any time Korra was in danger was ten times worse now, but he couldn't dwell on why or he'd never get there. After everything—everything—this made no sense. A rogue spirit shouldn't bother him. Korra had handled much worse.

Except this time was so, so different.

Mako skidded to a stop behind a police barricade, leaping off the bike and dumping his helmet on the ground. All the roads leading to the Tower had been blocked off. A crowd had gathered, but they were held back. They all watched Korra, spinning and ducking around a large spirit. It's essence glowed bright purple in the midday sun.

"Mako, good," Beifong said. "I hoped you'd be one of the ones to respond.

"Chief," Mako said. He wanted to push past Lin, get to Korra, get her out of danger, but prudence made him pause. The spirit was calming down. It hovered near Korra warily, but it had stopped attacking. Keeping his girlfriend and the spirit in his peripheral vision, Mako cut into whatever the chief had been saying, "What's Korra doing here?" Not the most professional way to ask the question, but it worked.

Lin gave him a side-wise glance. "Her job. At 1100 hours two officers reported a spirit harassing passing tourists. We sent a message to Air Temple Island and Korra got here at roughly 1130. She tried to talk it down, but well, you can see how well that went. She won't let any of us in yet, but I wanted to make sure we had benders on hand, just in case." Lin crossed her arms. "Damn, it's always good to see her back at full throttle."

Three weeks ago, Mako would have agreed with her. Now, it just annoyed him.

"Chief, we need to get her out of there."

Lin turned her shrewd glance back on him, one eyebrow arched. "And why is that?"

Mako's brain blanked. It had been three weeks since he'd found out and they still hadn't told anyone.

So far, Korra had managed to hide her pregnancy from everyone while they tried to figure out just how they would tackle this. Bolin didn't even know yet. Would Korra forgive him if he told Lin without talking to her first? But at the same time, if anything happened to her or the baby, Mako knew he wouldn't forgive himself.

Beifong glared up at him. "Mako, I was under the impression that Korra was back to top form. If that's not the case, I need to know. My men's lives are more important than Korra's pride."

"No, it's not anything like that..." Whatever else Mako had been planning to say was cut off as an explosion of light came from the Tower. The spirit sprouted, growing twenty feet in height. Tentacles sprang from its sides, several of them wrapping around the Tower's supports. Mako felt his heart stop.

Where was Korra?

There.

Korra had erected an earthen shield nad she was crouched behind it.

It didn't hold up for long, though.

The spirit lashed out with one of those tentacles and she rolled, just barely escaping getting brained.

Korra shouted something at the spirit, but she was too far away for Mako to make out the words. He recognized the stance she fell into as she sent what remained of her earthen wall flying at the spirit. As the tentacles reached out to bat away the chunks of stone, Korra ran, ducking between into the street they stood on—still in Mako's view, but hidden from the spirit which looked the other way.

For a moment, Mako got caught up in watching her. Seeing her like this, fighting, bending, looking as formidable as she was when she faced Kuvira, as she had been before Zaheer tried to break her. Pride clogged his throat, making his eyes sting. This was Korra as she was supposed to be. Fierce and alive and terrifying in all the right ways.

Her hand brushed across her stomach as she leaned against a building, bringing Mako back to the present. Mako was already moving when Korra glanced at Lin and gave determined nod, reaching Korra's side well before the other two cops Lin sent with him.

"Are you okay?" he asked, kneeling next to her. He reached forward to cover the hand on her stomach, thought better of it and rested his hand on her knee instead. With a crowd this big, there was bound to someone that would catch them at the wrong moment.

"I'm fine," she said. "Not even a scratch. Though Sunshine over there hasn't made that easy." Korra pressed her lips together and peeked around the corner.

"Korra…" Mako started as the other two cops ran up behind him.

"Alright," she said. "I need enough space that I can work my special magic and calm him down."

She flashed a grin at the other two cops, both of them faces Mako wasn't familiar with. Working for Wu for so long had put him out of touch with the cops actually working on the street. Mako felt like he met a new co-worker every day.

Korra met his gaze, nodding once. Mako didn't have to ask how she wants to play this. He knew. Flashy. She wants a distraction. She'll go out first, they'll follow, trying to get to spirits attention on them so she can fade into the background. If Mako was in a sentimental mood, he'd say he knew because of how well he knew Korra. Today was a more pragmatic day—they work so well together because of months of training and fighting together.

Korra jumped back out before he can try to stop her. All he could do was follow and make sure it ended fast. Barking a formation to his companions, Mako ran out into the plaza.

"Hey, ugly!" he shouted, sending fire blasting at the spirit. To his left, he saw Korra. He's not sure how she'll use her spiritual powers to calm it. Every other time she did this, she used water, but there isn't nearly enough water around them right now. His two companions sent chunks of rock at the spirit. Earthbenders then.

Their ploy worked. The spirit turned it's ire towards them. In just a few minutes, glowing, white light surrounded the angry creature. Mako stepped back, everything would be fine.

One of the earthbenders must not have known seen Mako's signal to stand down, because he hurled another chunk of rock at the spirit. A long tentacle wrapped around the huge projectiles and sent it flying back in Korra's direction.

"No!" he shouted.

Mako leapt, shoving Korra out of the way as he blasted fire at the rock. It broke, but the debris was big enough it knocked Mako to the ground. His vision flickered. Pressing his palms to the ground, he tried to get up.

He needed to get to Korra. Had to make sure she was alright.

The world swirled and Mako collapsed back on the ground.

Tension drained from the air around him and Mako knew Korra must have dispatched the spirit back to the Spirit World to cool down.

A dark blob, haloed in sunlight, appeared over him. Two blinks and he could make out Korra's worried eyes. Two bright spots in the shadows of her face. Her hands felt warm against his skin as she cradled his face.

"Mako, are you okay?"

All he managed was a groan. The shadow disappeared for a minute, the hands patted him down and then she was back.

"Mako, I think you have a concussion. Stay with me. You'll be fine. I need some water over here!"

His vision dimmed again. His eyes were so heavy. And even though he knew Korra wanted him to stay awake, Mako closed his eyes.

# # #

Korra wasn't there when he woke up. He waited for her to appear during the first few minutes, but she didn't. He tried to push the healers away, demanding to know where she was. At last, one of the healers told him he'd been out for nearly an hour and Korra had been sent home to wait for his release.

"The Avatar was drained by the battle. I thought it best that she get some rest considering her recent convalescence."

That appeased Mako. At least he knew she was alright. Though he didn't like the healer's tone much. She sounded like a doubter, one of those people that still questioned if Korra was physically and mentally sound enough to be the Avatar. As if she hadn't proven that a dozen times over since she came back.

At mid-afternoon, they finally let him go home. Mako just planned to make a quick stop there. Getting knocked out had scored him strict orders from the chief not to return to the station until the day after tomorrow—once a healer had cleared him. Right now, Mako needed to change and then he needed to check on Korra.

Luckily for his headache, Korra sat on his couch when he opened his apartment door.

"Mako!" Korra jumped up, covering the distance between them quickly. She grabbed his face, looking in one eye and then the other. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," he said. "Don't fall asleep for another couple of hours, take it easy the next couple of days."

Korra sighed. "Good. I was so worried, but they wouldn't let me see you."

Glancing at Bolin's closed door, Mako leaned down. "Are you okay?" He pressed his hand to her stomach, just to make sure she knew what he was asking.

"What? Me? Mako, I'm fine," she said. "It didn't even touch me. I will, however, have a bruise on my hip from where you knocked me down." Korra grinned

It wasn't the teasing that made the throb between his ears intensify. It was the glib tone, the cavalier attitude from earlier, the way she acted like he was silly for worrying.

"Korra, what were you thinking?" he asked.

"What was I thinking about what?"

"Fighting that spirit!"

Korra blinked and took a step back. "I'm the Avatar, it's what I do."

"You could have been hurt."

"But I wasn't. I'm fine." Her voice is clipped, restrained. She wanted to yell at him, that much is clear. She was glaring, eyes flashing and Mako found himself wanting to push her up against the wall and kiss her until he couldn't breathe.

He didn't though, which only added to his frustration.

"You have got to be more careful, Korra. You can't just go rushing into things anymore—"

"I didn't rush in." Korra propped a hand on her hip and leaned in, waving wildly with the other. "It was just a little spirit when I got there. I don't know what made it escalate from taking tourist hats to trying to take my head."

"Then you should have gotten out of there!" Mako didn't even care that he was shouting. Why was it so hard to get through to her? They were supposed to be past this crap.

"And let it go rampaging all through downtown? We had it contained, Mako."

"What if something had happened?"

"Nothing did happen." Korra finally matched her volume with Mako's. "Stop obsessing over something that didn't happen!"

"But what about next time?" Mako demanded. "What about next time, Korra? You can't keep acting like you're invincible anymore!"

Mako regretted the words instantly. He knew it was a stupid thing to say and braced himself for the hurt look on Korra's face. Korra didn't appear hurt, however, if anything it only made her angrier.

"I know that I'm not invincible. Nobody knows that better than me," she said. "But I don't get to just stop being the Avatar because I'm pregnant!" Korra spun in her heel, wrenching the door open. She slammed it so hard on her way out that the door bounced back open.

Mako put a hand to his head, groaning. As much from the pain lancing through his head as from how well he'd handled that argument. He stumbled over to the couch, holding his head in his hands and waitied for the pounding to stop.

Bolin's door creaked open.

"So...Did Korra just say what I heard her say?"

Mako groaned, looking up to find Bolin standing over him.

Bolin crossed his arms. "Bro, I think you and I need to have a little heart to heart."


	4. Three: Coming Back

Dinnertime rolled around and Mako didn't show. Korra wasn't surprised.

She was the only one though.

"Where's Mako?" Ikki asked as they all sat down. "We can't start without him."

Tenzin and Pema both looked at Korra. Pema gave Korra sympathetic smile, she'd probably seen Korra's foul mood that afternoon and guessed the reason.

"He—uh, I don't think he's going to be able to make it tonight," Korra said. "He had a rough day at work." Technically, that was true. Mako should be at home resting, even if it meant he missed dinner. He'd looked like he had a headache when she'd stormed out, it'd be better for him is he stayed home. Korra just wished she could believe that was the reason he hadn't showed.

"I heard there was a malevolent spirit in the city today," Tenzin said, picking up his chopsticks. "Were you two involved in that?"

"Yeah," she said, focusing on her food so she wouldn't have to see the empty space beside her.

"Ooh, what happened?" Ikki asked, clasping her hands beneath her chin.

"Is Mako okay?" Pema asked.

"He's fine," Korra said, conscious of the edge in Pema's voice. "Managed to get himself knocked out, but he didn't get hurt badly."

Ikki's eyes practically glowed. "Was he trying to save you? Were you worried? Did you have to heal him? Was it romantic?"

Korra shook her head, refusing to answer Ikki's questions. She didn't want to talk about it right now. Didn't want to even think about it. She shouldn't have stormed out. What was Mako going to think about that? This is exactly how things had started spiraling last time—just minus a war. The whole situation scared Korra.

The truth was, Mako had a point. So did she. She was the Avatar. There were things that only she could do—like deal with feisty spirits or convince block-headed rulers that they had to get along. Thankfully, things had settled down since Kuvira, so Korra wasn't needed as much. Most of the time, people needed her to solve simple problems. Today's encounter was the first dangerous situation she'd dealt with since Kuvira.

The speed with which the encounter had gone south scared her though. If she had been hurt, what would that have done to the baby? Korra resisted the urge to wrap her arms protectively around her stomach. No one at the table knew—well, maybe Pema, Korra couldn't quite make up her mind about that one.

Pema's voice broke through Korra's clouded thoughts. "Mako, you did make it. How're you feeling?"

"Much better."

Korra's head shot up. Mako gave her a small smile when their eyes met. Korra took a quick breath and then stared back down at her food with twice the intensity of before. Every nerve under her skin tingled as he passed behind her and took his usual seat.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey."

He came.

Warmth bubbled up inside of her, threatening to spill over. She wanted to grin, but she also had that feeling that told her she was about to start crying. Korra didn't want that. If she wanted to make it through dinner, she needed rein her emotions tightly in.

Stupid hormones.

"Sorry, I'm late. Bolin and I were talking and I lost track of time."

Bolin? What sort of excuse—Oh, crap. She had completely forgotten that Bolin was home when she'd arrived at the apartment earlier. Aware of her last words, Korra blushed. _Well, that's one less person to tell._

"How'd the rest of your day go?" Mako asked.

"Pretty uneventful," Korra replied. She hadn't concentrated this much on eating since she had to relearn how to use her hands.

Under the table, Mako's hand brushed against her knee. A silent question. She glanced at him side long and tried to offer him a little smile. He was staring at her so intently, apology written so plainly on his face that she knew he thought she was still mad at him.

Korra put her chopsticks down. "I just realized I forgot to feed Naga, I'll be right back."

"Korra, surely it can wait until after we've eaten," Tenzin said.

"Tenzin, weren't you just telling Meelo how our animal friends depend on us and we have to put them before ourselves?"

_Bless you, Pema_, Korra thought. But she said, "It'll only take a minute, please keep eating."

With that, Korra shot to her feet and left the room. Keeping herself in check made her throat burn and her chest tight. She managed though until she confirmed that there were no footsteps following her. Finally, Korra relaxed and let the tears slide down her face, though she avoided the really ugly crying until she got to Naga's stall.

The polar bear dog wasn't even surprised to see her. She snuffled Korra's hair once, then settled down again as Korra leaned against her friend, the soft fur muffling her tears.

# # #

Mako came looking shortly after that.

By then at least, the most violent part of the crying fit was past.

"Hey," he said, letting himself into Naga's stall. She seemed slightly more interested in Mako than she had been in Korra, but she didn't get up.

"Hey," Korra said. She kept her head down, embarrassed to still be crying. It was so odd to her to be bawling over something that had made her happy. Korra understood tears of joy, but this? This felt a little over the top.

Mako knelt in front of her, his fingers curling over her forearm. "Korra, I know you're still mad at me…"

"I'm not mad anymore," she said. Korra wiped away the rest of the tears before resting her head against Naga's side. She kept her eyes closed.

"Okay, but you are still upset." Mako shifted, so he was sitting next to Korra, his side pressed close to her, his hand still resting over hers.

Korra sighed, her head drifting to his shoulder. "Nope."

"You're not mad and you're not upset." Mako scratched at his ear. "Care to tell me why you ran off in tears?"

"I did not run off in tears."

"Nearly."

"You came," Korra said. "It made me happy."

"So…you're crying because I came to dinner and that made you happy?" Mako sighed. "I am so confused," he muttered, hanging his head. He smiled though when Korra laughed.

"Well, you did have a concussion. Confusion is normal." Korra reached up to trace her fingers over his temple. The healers had done a decent job of speeding up the healing process, but the skin was still slightly discolored. Like an old bruise. "You came."

"You didn't think I would show up?" Mako pulled away.

"It was a pretty bad fight."

"We've had worse. At least you didn't send any furniture flying this time," he said. They grinned at each other. Then he blushed, fiddling with the buttons on his jacket as he looked away. "Of course I came. I've realized it's not about how much we fight—though I don't think either of us should make a habit of it—it's about what we do after the fight. You and I—we're both too hot-headed to expect smooth sailing all of the time."

"That's the truth," Korra said.

"We're always going to fight," Mako said. He took her hand, gazing back at her. "But I'm always going to come back and work things out."

Korra felt tears pricking at her eyes, though they weren't as overwhelming as earlier. Grabbing Mako's arm, she pressed her face into his shoulder until the urge to cry lessened.

"You are right," Mako said, slouching against Naga, holding Korra so she could curl up against him. The polar bear dog gave a little groan and thumped her tail a couple of times, sending dust and straw flying into the air.

"About?" Korra asked after she'd sneezed once or twice.

"Being the Avatar isn't something you can't just turn off." Mako sighed. "But…"

Korra felt, rather than heard the growl of frustration that rumbled through Mako's chest.

"But it's not just me anymore," she whispered.

Her boyfriend nodded. "No, it's not."

His arm around her shoulders shifted, sliding down her body hesitantly, curling around her waist. He was so tentative about the way he touched her sometimes. Acting like just touching her bump was taking extreme liberties. And while Korra appreciated this when they were in public, here, with only Naga watching, she found it ridiculous and maybe a little bit adorable. She pulled his hand over the all of the way, resting her own on top.

"People are going to notice if I suddenly start staying out of fights," she said.

"We're not going to be able to keep this secret for much longer anyways," Mako said. His voice was so soft, his breath teasing with the stray hair by her ear. He watched as their two hands rose and fell with Korra's breathing. "We should tell the chief, she can help us."

"Or I could just start calling for back-up right away and letting them do most of the work without involving Lin yet."

Mako bit his lip, avoiding her eyes again.

"Say it. I promise not to set you on fire or earthbend you into an early grave."

"It's just…" Mako ran a hand through his hair and Korra really wanted to reach up with her own and further muss his hair. That would have been counterproductive though, so she sat still. "Won't it get harder the longer we wait? Maybe we should just get it over with and hope for the best."

"Mako, you and I are already the bread and butter of every seedy gossip rag in the City. Do you really want to see our picture with the words 'Love Child' plastered over half a dozen papers."

She stood. She hadn't realized how warm it was sitting next to Mako until she was surrounded on all sides by cool air. Mako watched her, eyebrows raised and his mouth deliberately schooled into a straight line.

"Telling Lin makes you that nervous?"

"Yes," Korra said. "And no." Korra realized she was pacing and stopped, leaning against the stall door. Mako got up to lean on the wall beside her. In the dim light of the stall, his eyes were bronze instead of golden. "The decent papers are being civil, but I can feel them just waiting like piranha koi and here I am handing them the biggest meal they'll ever get. The press is going to have a field day with this Mako."

"I know."

"This would all be so much easier if things weren't so crazy. I could disappear to the South Pole for a few months, keep everything quiet. Voila, no scrutiny, no censure, no stress."

"You'd have to leave our baby there," Mako said.

Korra leaned out a little, checking to make sure that no one was nearby.

"Unless you had some magical way to explain why the Avatar was returning with a child. Could you do that, Korra?"

Korra shook her head.

"I need some time to figure out how to do this," Korra said. She held up her hand as Mako opened his mouth. She knew what he was going to say. "A few days. That's it. The end of the week we start telling people whether we have a plan or not."

Mako nodded. "Fair enough."

"We'll still need to keep it quiet until I can tell my parents," she said.

"You haven't told them yet?"

"This isn't something you tell someone while trying to scream over static. I want to go to the South Pole and tell them in person." Korra looked down, reaching to tug at her wolf tails before she remembered that no, her hair was short now. She settled for wrapping a few strands around her fingers. "I want to do it right."

"I'll talk with the Chief, see if I can't get some time off," Mako said.

Korra blinked, squeezing his hand lightly. "You don't have to do that."

"But I want to," he said. "And it's the right thing. Besides, it'll save your dad the trouble of coming all the way to Republic City."

"You're not worried, are you?"

"I've seen him fight, Korra. Your dad is…intense."

Giggling, Korra said, "Well, I had to get it from somewhere."

"The end of the week?"

"The end of the week and then we tell all the important people: Asami, Tenzin, Lin, Pema…"

"I'm pretty sure Pema already knows," Mako said.

She sighed. "Yeah, me too."


	5. Four: Terror Within

The end of the week came and they still had no plan.

Mako wasn't sure he had the heart to hold Korra to her word. So many things were forced on her whether she was ready or not, Mako didn't want this to be one of them. Plus, Korra was right about the press. The minute this was out, there would be questions. More questions than they had thought about so far. Questions that they needed to think about.

Questions he would think about later. Maybe answering some of those would help them be more ready. For now though, he was trying his best to push all thoughts of Korra and the baby aside and do his job.

Granted, that would be much easier if he didn't know there was a desk full of paperwork waiting for him when he got back to his desk.

A desk full of paperwork and—

"Asami?"

"Mako," she said, jumping to her feet. "Thank goodness, Beifong just…"

Mako grabbed her arm, pulling her into the hallway. He had a crawling feeling that this had something to do with Korra. Asami was smart, she had to have realized something was up and his coworkers had pretty sensitive ears when they wanted. Loose-lipped detectives were exactly the kind of people the gossip columns loved.

"What are you doing here?"

"Bolin sent me." Her eyes narrowed. "Mako, what's going on?"

"Is Korra okay?"

"You heard then?"

It felt like someone had shoved their hand into his gut and twisted. Mako grabbed both her arms. "No, Asami, I didn't hear. What happened? Is. Korra. Okay?"

"She was fine when I left," Asami said. Again she gave him a look that said she knew there was something he wasn't telling her. "She was just freaked out and Bolin was freaked out and she wanted someone to come get you, but Bolin wasn't letting her go to the hospital alone, so…"

Mako spun at the word 'hospital', bolting down the hallway and slamming through the door to the stairwell. Asami's heels clacked down the stairs behind him.

"Mako. Mako!" Her hand closed like a vice around his arm. "What aren't you telling me?"

"Not now."

"Mako." It was Beifong. She'd just come through the door, stopping Mako short just before he ran into her. "Don't you still have a shift to finish? Asami, I understand you and Mako are friends, but I already told you, I can't have him just running off any time you guys think you need him."

"Chief," Mako said, pushing past her, "I will explain later, but right now I have to go." He might have blurted everything out then and there, but he didn't want to take the time.

Behind him, Asami made a helpless noise and followed. She scooped her helmet up from her scooter as they left Police headquarters. How had he missed Asami's scooter? It was right there.

"I thought today was just press junkets?" Mako said, jamming his helmet on his head.

"It was. We've been running around all day. She complained about being a little dizzy at the last one, next thing I know she's heading to the hospital and Bolin is telling me to come get you."

"Well, are you coming?"

Asami swung on behind Mako and they raced off. It took every ounce of Mako's self-control not to use his siren, but he was already pushing it by skipping out on his shift. He would probably get there in the same amount of time without abusing his police privileges.

When they got to the hospital, Mako was confronted with another problem. He didn't know where Korra and Bolin were and neither did Asami. Shoving his badge into his pocket, Mako approached the front desk.

"Hi," he said, trying to sound calm. Would they even let him see Korra? Technically he wasn't family. Maybe he should have left the badge on. "I'm looking for Avatar Korra. I was told she was here."

The receptionist, a thin man with spectacles regarded him for a moment. "You're Mako?"

"Yes."

"Your brother said to expect you. Third floor. I'll call up and let them know you're coming." The man waved them towards an elevator and picked up the phone.

The moment they were in the elevator Asami put a hand on his shoulder. He was scaring her, he knew. A part of him knew he'd feel really foolish if this turned out to be nothing. Terror clawed at his mind though, refusing to let him think rationally. Korra, whose arm had to be twisted half the time before she accepted help, had asked for him. That meant she was terrified too.

"Mako, will you please tell me what's going on?"

"I…"

The elevator dinged open and they found Bolin waiting for them on the other side. He offered Mako a tentative smile. For the first time in what felt like hours, the fist in Mako's gut eased up.

"Bolin, what's going on?"

"Not exactly sure," Bolin said. "There was a lot of talk I didn't understand. Something about being dehydrated and then Korra let them kick me out of the room, but everything's okay."

Mako let out a breath. "Thanks, Bo." He grabbed his brother and hugged him, half out of relief, half because he was afraid he might fall down. Now that he knew everything was good, his heart was beat a thousand mile a minutes. "Where?" he asked, pulling away.

Bolin led Mako and a silent Asami down the hall, stopping at door just as a healer exited.

"Hello," she said. Her eyes flicked from Bolin to Mako to Asami before resting on Mako again. "You're the father?"

Asami gasped. "What?"

Swallowing, Mako nodded. The words wouldn't fit around the lump in his throat.

The healer's eyes shifted behind him to Bolin.

"This is him," Bolin said. "Come on, Asami. I hear the coffee here is a special kind of awful. We should find out for ourselves."

"You knew?" she hissed as Bolin took her arm.

"What? I was sworn to secrecy."

Mako had to smile at that. Bolin had accepted Korra's pregnancy with his usual gusto and verve. He'd tell his brother how grateful he was that Bolin hadn't left Korra alone. He knew she appreciated that as much as he did.

"I apologize, I was under the impression that all of the Avatar's friends knew."

Mako shook his head. "It's fine. Is she okay?"

"They're both fine," the healer said. She consulted her clipboard. "It seems the Avatar was experiencing discomfort and a bit of dizziness brought on by dehydration. I did a full exam, but everything's normal. Just the baby growing. Sometimes the stretching causes the muscles to cramp." She touched Mako's arm. "She's getting dressed now. Go in whenever you're ready."

Mako didn't need to be told twice. He slipped inside, schooling his face into what felt like a reassuring expression. Mako's breath caught in his throat as Korra turned around, still knotting her skirt around her waist. It was the first time he'd seen her without her parka in weeks. She'd been wearing it religiously, even though she was used to far colder temperatures than Republic City offered in the fall. She looked pregnant. Granted, not by much, but the reality of it all crashed down on Mako all over again.

"Hey," she said.

Three steps and he wrapped her in his arms. Her hands clutched his back as she pressed her face into his chest.

"I'm sorry Bolin freaked you out for nothing," she said, her voice muffled.

"Shh. Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yes." Her voice broke. Korra's fingers dug into his jacket, pulling it tight against is his shoulders. "No," she rasped. "No. I'm not okay. I was so scared. I could barely stand upright and then there was this pain in my side and it wouldn't go away and I was terrified I was losing her and it would have been all my fault because I'm the Avatar and I just…" There was another crack as she shuddered and fell silent.

"Hey," Mako said, tilting her face up to his. "Hey, who was telling me not to worry about things that haven't happened just the other day? It didn't happen, Korra. And even if—even if it had, that wouldn't be your fault. Not even the Avatar can control everything."

In the back of his mind, Mako had the vague memory of a night years after Bolin had been born, when he'd heard his father say similar words to his mother. He hadn't understood then. His small brain had only been able to grasp that his mother was sad and the promised brother or sister wasn't coming anymore. Perhaps that had been for the best though. Mako wasn't sure he would have been able to take care of a six-year-old and a two- or three-year-old.

Korra nodded, slipping her arms back around his waist so there the space between them disappeared again. It was a strange feeling. Her body already fit differently against his. How had he not noticed this earlier?

"Thank you," she said.

"So what did the healer say?"

"Try to get three meals a day, stay hydrated, minimize stress and get plenty of rest." Korra sighed. "That last one made me laugh."

Mako chuckled. He knew the last three days had been crazy for her. Since the attack on Harmony Tower, Korra had been hustling from organization to organization, calming fears and reassuring them that the event had been random and not the harbinger of more. Add that to the fact that Korra still didn't sleep well some nights.

"But everything is okay?"

"Yeah. She's just growing."

"She?"

Korra bit her lip and glanced up at him. "Yeah. The healer was pretty sure it's a girl. Is that—is that okay?"

"It's perfect." He wanted to kiss her, but he was ninety-nine percent positive that he wouldn't be able to stop smiling long enough to kiss properly. The last traces of fear finally lifted from Korra's eyes.

"Good, because no take backs. We're stuck with her."

There was a knock at the door and Bolin stuck his head in. "You guys finished yet? There's this scary nurse-lady that's walked by at least three times to see if you're done."

"In a minute, Bro." He stared at his brother until Bolin retreated, closing the door behind him.

Korra sighed. "Time to deal with any press junkies that are out there and then I'd better go try this 'rest' thing out. I'm supposed to take the rest of today easy, healer's orders."

"You can always crash at my place if you don't want to go all the way out to Air Temple Island." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his badge. "I'd better go back to work…" Groaning, he rubbed at his eyes. "I'm going to have to tell Lin, you know. I kind of blew her off earlier."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be," he said. "She'll understand. This is going to be the most awkward conversation of my life, but she'll understand."

"See you when you get off?" Korra reached for her parka, pulling it over her head. It amazed him how effortlessly it hid her growing belly. Even though he knew to look for it, he could barely tell. It had to be hot though, even with the weather cooling down.

"Of course." He leaned down and kissed her cheek. "Oh, and we're going to have to deal with Asami when we get out there."

"I figured." She sighed. "Guess we might as well get started."

Mako opened the door for her, letting Korra take his hand and lead him into the hall. Bolin was sitting in a chair, hands behind his head, silently mouthing numbers as he stared at the ceiling tiles. Asami stood against the wall, arms crossed. As soon as she saw Mako and Korra she straightened.

"Hey," she said, looking at Korra. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah." Korra's hand tightened around Mako's, her nails sharp against his skin.

"So, you're pregnant."

"Yeah," Korra said again.

Asami glared at Mako. He couldn't help it, he blushed. Seeming satisfied, she turned her ire on Korra.

"I can't believe you didn't tell me."

"We haven't really told anyone yet," Korra said. "It's still early."

Asami jabbed a finger in Bolin's direction. "He knew."

"In their defense," Bolin said, "they didn't actually mean to tell me. I just happened to be in the right place at the wrong time."

"Bolin, shut up before I smack you," Asami said.

"Bruh-ther," Bolin said, pointing to himself. "I've got first dibs on all big news."

"Asami," Korra said. "I'll tell you all about it once we are out of here. But first, let's see if we can't sneak out the back."


	6. Five: Whatever Happens

Korra occupied the dreamless place between sleeping and waking when she heard the bedroom door open. Korra opened her eyes, stretching a little.

"Hey," she mumbled.

Mako froze, the floorboard creaking under his foot. "Hey. How are you?" he asked, sitting down on the bed next to her. His fingers ghosted across her forehead, smoothing her stubborn cowlick for a moment before it bounced back into place.

"Better," she said.

Korra tapped her lips for a proper hello. Mako bent down, kissing her lightly before pulling away just enough to rest his forehead against hers. Sighing, Korra closed her eyes again.

"I didn't mean to wake you."

"It's okay, I wasn't really asleep."

He smiled. "I'm surprised to find you in here, Ms. No-I'm-Good-With-the-Couch."

"Bolin was hovering. I thought putting a door between us was better than freezing him in a block of ice."

"I appreciate that. I'm sure Bolin appreciates that too."

Korra tugged on Mako's arm. "Join me?"

"I'm filthy. Let me change first," he said. "It won't take long."

Korra pushed herself into a sitting position, watching as he grabbed normal clothes from a drawer. He gave her another smile before ducking inside his bathroom.

He stuck his head back out again a moment later. "Oh, and I stopped by Narook's and picked up dinner if you're hungry."

"I love you," Korra said. Her stomach rumbled. She wasn't sure if she'd eaten since this morning. Thankfully, she was gradually finding herself less queasy, so breakfast was staying down most mornings.

"Just try to make sure you two leave some for me. Bolin's already out there."

Korra leapt from the bed. "Bolin, if you've eaten all of the five-flavor soup I am going Avatar State on your ass."

Mako 's laugh rang behind her as she headed for the kitchen. Bolin was at the table, stuffing his face with seaweed noodles.

"Korra," he said. Or at least, that's what she thought he said as he pointed to a steaming carton with his chopsticks. He slurped his noodles into his mouth, swallowing. "Don't worry. After last time, I know better than to get between the Avatar and her food."

They both laughed and Korra joined him at the table. Opening her soup, Korra accepted a pair of chopsticks from Bolin. Silence stretched for several minutes as they both hovered greedily over their food.

"So," he said, leaning back and letting out a loud belch. "How are you feeling?"

"Better." Korra took a dumpling from the bag that Bolin proffered. "Though, if you ask me that again before tomorrow, we might have a problem."

"Noted," Bolin replied.

Korra smiled, she'd been grateful for Bolin's presence today. If she'd had to, she could have handled being alone, but she was extremely thankful to have someone else's support. She placed her hand over his, pausing him as he reached for the bag of dumplings.

"Bolin?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks, for today. For every other day too, but especially today."

Bolin nodded. Before he could say anything, Mako came into the room. Bolin stood, gathering up the cartons that once held his dinner.

"Well, that's my cue to go," he said, surrendering his chair to Mako. They only had two. "I'm going to go spend some quality time with my special lady. Don't worry, Mom and Dad, I'll be home before curfew." He gave one ear-to-ear grin and dashed out the door.

Mako sighed and pulled the chair around the table so he could sit next to Korra.

"Well, he's got the supportive part down," Korra said. "Now he just needs to work on subtle." She was smiling though. After Mako, Bolin and Asami were two of the people she had been most worried about. Knowing that her friends didn't think badly her had helped to lift some of the worry that had been circling around her for weeks. If the people she cared about supported them, what did she care about the rest of the world?

Nodding, Mako reached for the bag of dumplings offering Korra one. She shook her head.

Korra scooted her chair closer, leaning her head on his shoulder. "How did it go with Beifong?"

He shrugged. "She was a little…surprised. I mean, she suspected something was up after I freaked out the other day, but I don't think she expected this."

"We should start a club." She broke off a piece of the dumpling in his hand, stuffing it in her mouth as Mako rolled his eyes. "Did you get in much trouble?"

"None at all once I explained everything. She won't admit, but I think she was actually a little worried."

"Is that why you're home early?" Korra had assumed that it was because he'd negotiated with another cop. He nodded

"You are feeling better, right?" he asked, setting his food down and looking her in the eye.

"Still a little sore," she said. "But the healer said that might come and go for the next couple of days. The healer just said to take it easy for a little while."

Mako grabbed Bolin's glass and took a swig, washing down his meal. "Will we need to postpone our trip to the South Pole?"

"I don't think so," she said. "But I'll check, just to be sure."

Korra still wasn't sure what exactly to tell her parents.

Korra was certain they would ask her every question imaginable. They would want to know what their plans were, but she and Mako hadn't made any plans yet. All Korra knew for sure was that they wanted to stay together, to do this together. Korra hadn't expected any less from Mako. She knew they should talk things out more. Solidify those planes, but every time she thought about broaching the subject of their future, the words stuck in her throat. Korra was terrified that if they couldn't make it work this time, it would never go back to this. She didn't want the rest of their lives to be spent bitterly handing their daughter off from one parent to the other.

"C'mere," Mako said, wrapping an arm around her waist. Korra took the invitation, sliding into his lap and draping her arms around his neck.

"Mako," she said. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Anything."

"If this hadn't happened…if there was no baby, would you still want to marry me?"

He exhaled, long and slow. "Yes, Korra. Maybe not so soon, but I've had a lot of time to think since…everything happened." His fingers laced with hers, his thumb tracing over her wrist. He whispered, "I still can't imagine my life without you."

"Me either," she said.

Korra shifted so leaning against him was a little more comfortable, his jaw brushing the top of her head. Their free hands joined, fingers weaving together over her stomach. There was nothing to feel there right now but the taut little bump, but in a few weeks the healer had said they might start to feel movement. "I love you, you know that don't you?"

"I know," he said. "And I love you. Whatever you decide, I will be right here, supporting you in whatever way you need."

"I do want to get married," she said. Somehow, it was easier like this, with her eyes closed and his heartbeat thumping against her shoulder. She felt his chest expand quickly, could feel his body tense and shift forward, like he was about to jump to his feet. "I'm sorry it took me so long to decide, but I had to be sure. I had to know that we were doing the right thing. That I wanted it. But no matter how I look at where my life could go, one thing remains the same: I want to spend it with you."

Why postpone what she saw as inevitable anyways?

Mako's hands grasped her shoulders, holding her steady as she turned to face him.

"Korra, are you sure about this?"

Korra nodded. Cupping his face in her hands, she said, "I'm sure if you're sure."

Mako leaned forward, meeting her halfway. Their lips met briefly, carefully. One arm around her shoulder, the slipped under her knees as Mako stood and carried her to the couch, where the kisses became long and slow.

"How soon do you want to do this," he asked.

"We should probably do it as soon as possible. Not like we have a lot of time."

Mako nodded. "We should probably keep it quiet."

"Probably," she said

"Do you want to wait until we get to the South Pole?" he asked. "That way your parents could be there."

"No," Korra said. "We do it before we leave. Nothing fancy, just have some city official sign the papers. Announce it before we leave and theSn escape the heyday the press will have for a little while." They were leaving for the South Pole in a week. urely they could manage to survive the newspaper gossips until then.

"And they won't have a heyday when we come back a week later and you're obviously pregnant?"

"Maybe if we don't specify a date and let them draw their own conclusions?" Being famous really was a pain. She hated having her business splashed across the front page, but apparently everyone and their mother felt the need to express their opinion.

"We'd have to make sure it was someone we trusted," Mako said.

Korra groaned softly. "We could ask Tenzin." He was still a city official. He could draw up the paper work and they could grab Asami and Bolin as witnesses and have it all be done. Korra didn't doubt he would do it—his brow furrowed in disapproval the entire time. "And he might be able to help us placate the press."

"Yeah. Hold on," he said. "If we're really doing this, there's something you should have."

Mako stood, fussing with his clothes as he headed back to his room.

For a moment, she wondered what he could be going to get. As far as she knew the only heirloom he had from his parents was his father's scarf, but maybe he'd gotten something from his family when they left Ba Sing Se.

Mako reappeared. "I don't know much about Water Tribe wedding traditions," he said, kneeling in front of her and placing a small box in her hands. It wasn't anything fancy, just a simple box, covered in dark blue velvet. "But I remember this one."

Korra didn't have to open the box to know what it was. Brushing her fingers over the top of the box, she opened it. Any thoughts that he'd gotten a second hand necklace from a pawn shop vanished. A second hand necklace would have been fine with her, of course, but this wasn't like most Water Tribe necklaces. Oh, it was the same blue stone and ribbon combination that she knew, but instead of the usual water motif, this one was engraved with an overlapping moon and sun.

"Mako," she breathed. "You've been thinking about this for a while." She knew what a necklace like this cost. And she was well aware of how tight Mako's budget. This wasn't something that he could have just grabbed on the way home. "How long have you been saving for this."

"Do you remember that big fight we had seven—eight weeks ago?"

When had they started counting their lives in weeks? She remembered that fight. Even more she remembered how their refusal to let one argument end their relationship had felt like a turning point.

If Korra had any doubts, they vanished in that moment. "I love you," she said, leaning forward to kiss him.

"I love you." He brushed his lips against hers again.

"We're really doing this."

"Yeah."

Korra bit her lip. "Where would we live?" It was just one of a thousand questions they needed to answer, but it was going to be the biggest one for the next few months. "I mean, would I move here? Or would you come to the island. Here might be better because of your job."

Mako sighed and climbed back onto the couch. "The island would be better for our privacy. And when the baby comes, this place will be way too small."

"Spirits, this is real." All the air felt like it had been sucked out of her lungs. Korra let her head fall against Mako's shoulder. She felt drained again. Being Avatar did not allow nearly enough opportunities for naps. "This is real." She resisted when he tried to pull her back into his lap. "I guess we'd better go talk to Tenzin."

"Not tonight," Mako said. "You've dealt with enough, we can tackle all of that tomorrow."

Korra nodded. "Okay."

"Do you want me to phone the island and tell them you're crashing here?"

The last fateful over-nighter at Mako's led to considerable fallout when she'd gotten back to the island to discover that Pema hadn't slept. The older woman had understood when Korra gave her the (very) watered down version of events, but Korra had promised to call if anything like that ever happened again.

Technically it wasn't that late yet, but she was already tired and Mako was right about not wanting to deal with Tenzin and the rest of it. She didn't want to face anyone on the island again until they could come clean.

"Please?'

"I'll run down to the main office then. Be right back." Mako squeezed her hand and headed for the door.

Gently, she pulled the engagement necklace out of its box. This was real. She'd known that for weeks, of course, but this meant they weren't just living from day to day anymore. They were going to be making choices that would have repercussions years down the road.

They were planning a future together.

Whatever else happened, Korra realized that was what mattered to her—that they faced it as a team.


	7. Six: Tomorrow Comes

Korra was not an easy person to wake up in the morning. This didn't surprise Mako. He imagined that when you grew up sleeping in the same place every night, it's easy to be a heavy sleeper. After several tries, he managed to get her to crack her eyes open.

"It's too early," she says. She latched onto his arm, pulling him back down with her. "Tenzin will be meditating for the next couple of hours anyways."

With a sigh, Mako gave in. Because she probably needed her rest and the couch really wasn't the most comfortable place to sleep. Plus, today was his day off. So he slipped under the covers with Korra, curling around her. She was asleep again before he can say a word. He managed to fall asleep again too, despite the fact that lying close like this, her hair tickled his nose.

When he woke again, Korra sat on his side of the bed, fully dressed. She smiled. "Hey."

"Hey."

"Fun fact," she said, "The Southern Water Tribe is one of the few places where it isn't considered bad luck for the groom to see the bride before the wedding." Korra grinned at him. She was wearing the necklace he got her. The high collar of her shirt hid the ribbon, but the pendant nestled in the opening, bright and shining against the dark material of her shirt. He always liked the dark blues she favored in the cold months. They made her eyes stand out.

"Well, I don't believe in luck, so it's the same either way." Mako slipped out of bed. "What do you think I should wear?"

Korra shrugged. "Whatever you want," she said. "I'll be wearing this. Not much else fits me right now."

Mako hid his surprise by rummaging around in one of his drawers, not that there's much to rummage through. For some reason, he assumed that she would change into something a bit fancier. But thinking about the only formal dress he'd ever seen her wear, he realized she was right. There was no give in that dress. If the clothes she wore now were tight, there was no way that dress would fit her.

Korra rested a hand on her stomach. "I'm going to go find something for breakfast," she said. "We're starving."

He smiled as she left the room, quickly locating one of his usual shirts and his least beat-up pair of pants. His normal jacket would have to do for today. Later...later he would figure out how to make this up to Korra. There had to be something they could do to make up for the slapdash affair their wedding would be.

# # #

Pema must have been waiting for them to show that morning, because they hadn't even gotten to the Air Temple proper before the older woman greeted them.

"Good morning, you two," she said, grabbing Rohan's hand before he could wander off after a turtleduck. The little airbender boy scowled at his mother.

"Korra," Ikki said as she and Meelo whizzed in from overhead. "You didn't come home last night. Were you and Mako fighting bad guys? Did evil spirits try to take over Republic City again? You missed an awesome game ofairball last night. Meelo totally bust his head open."

"Yeah, thanks to you." Meelo glared at his sister. Then he bent his head down, revealing a thin, line of stitches on his scalp. "See, Korra? There was blood everywhere."

Korra laughed, exchanging a glance with Pema. "I'll see what I can do about that in a little bit."

"Aw," Meelo said. "I was hoping it'd leave a cool scar."

"Don't worry," Korra said. "I'll make sure it does.

"Kids, don't you have chores you should be doing?" Pema said. "We had a deal if you want to go on that trip with your father, remember?"

"Yes, Mama," they said and flew off.

Pema sighed. "Honestly, heads in the clouds all the time. Just like their grandfather." She was smiling though, so Mako thought maybe she didn't mind too much. She turned her full attention on Korra. "Is everything alright? Mako didn't say much on the phone."

"Yeah," Korra said. "I just had a rough day yesterday and... um, do you know where Tenzin is? We kind of need to talk to him."

Pema smiled and shook her head. "Why don't you and Mako go wait in his office? The kids will know better than to bother you there. I'll have one of the acolytes go fetch my husband."

"Thank you, Pema."

She walked with them in silence until they reached the main building. As Korra and Mako headed inside, she called out to them.

"Just remember, Korra, My husband never handles surprises well. Don't listen to a word he says until he's had a moment to process everything."

Both of them ducked their heads. Mako knew his cheeks were flaming red.

"She knows," he said.

"Of course she knows." Korra sighed. "She has four kids already. She's too smart not to have noticed."

Mako put an arm around Korra's shoulders. "It'll be alright."

"I know," Korra said. "But I'm not looking forward to the lecture."

"I could light his robes on fire if he tries."

Korra giggled. "Probably not the best way to get Tenzin to do us a favor."

"He'll do it," Mako said as he opened the office door for her. "He loves you like you're part of his family."

Korra offered him a wan smile. She looked very pale and her eyes had a pinched look he recognized. It had graced her face many times while they were dealing with Kuvira. Someday, Mako hoped she would learn not to let what other people thought get to her like this.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

Korra nodded.

"We don't have to do this today," he said. "We have a week before I leave and we can always find someone in the South Pole if we want."

She sighed and shook her head. "No, we need to do this now," Korra said. "If we don't, we won't until it's too late. Then we might as well just resign ourselves to me staying in the South Pole until the baby comes."

She was right, of course. He opened his mouth to say her so, but at that moment the door to Tenzin's office slid open.

"Baby?" Tenzin asked. "Korra, what are you talking about?"

Korra sucked in a breath. Her panicked eyes turned on Mako as Tenzin stepped inside, sliding the door closed behind him. Narrowed gray eyes regarded them both, daring them to confirm what he'd just heard.

"Explain."

Korra had a death grip on Mako's hand.

Swallowing, Mako took a step forward. "Korra's pregnant."

"So I gathered," Tenzin said. "And how did this happen?"

Mako couldn't decide what to say to that.

"The usual way," Korra said. "I don't think you want the details."

"Korra, do you realize how serious—"

"Yes," she said.

Her voice was soft. Not what Mako expected. Sometimes he was still surprised by how much Korra had changed in her time away. Three years ago, she would have shouted at Tenzin. Even now, he could see that "deal with it" gleam in her eyes that was just so Korra. As always, it made him want to kiss her, but he didn't think Tenzin would appreciate that as much as Korra would. Clasping his hands beind his back, he let Korra continue.

"Yes, Tenzin I am well aware of how serious this is. Believe me, it's the only thing I can think about most days. I am—" Her voice cracked a little and Mako squeezed her hand. She squeezed back. "_We_ are trying the best we can to deal with this in the best way possible." Korra took in a deep breath, exhaling slowly. "That's why we want you to marry us."

Tenzin sighed, rubbing his temples with one hand. Looking weary—Mako was amazed by how much the last few years had aged him—Tenzin made his way to the chair behind his desk.

"I apologize, Korra. I can see that you have thought about this. You are a grown woman and I should not have spoken to you like you were a child." Tenzin leaned back, resting folded hands in front of him. "All the same, I have to ask: Are you sure that's what you want?"

Korra looked to Mako. She was giving him one last chance to back out of this, he knew. Mako smiled.

"Yes, Tenzin, we're sure. We've spent weeks thinking about this and…"

Tenzin held up a hand. "I mean, are you sure you want me to marry you. You'll be in the South Pole in a few days. Wouldn't you rather wait until your parents will be there?"

"I want to be able to inform the press about our marriage before we leave," Korra said. "We've already waited longer than we should have and it's getting harder to hide." She sighed. "I'm just not sure how we should go about telling everyone. I mean, do we make an announcement or what?" Korra waved her hands about, frustration clear on her face. Mako stepped closer, resting his hand on the small of her back. She shot him a grateful smile.

To his credit, Tenzin had refrained from looking at Korra's stomach for the entire time succeeding their announcement. He did so now with narrow eyes.

"How far along are you?" he asked.

"Thirteen weeks," Korra said. Now that everything was out in the open, her nervousness and awkwardness seemed to have dissipated. Mako could still see some in the tension of her shoulders, but her voice no longer sounded strung tight. "Only Bolin and Asami know right now. We thought it best to keep it quiet until now in case—just in case."

"Is everything alright?" he asked. "Pema was worried about something yesterday. Was this it?"

"We, um, had a scare. But it turned out to be nothing."

Tenzin nodded, his eyes clouded over. Mako got the distinct impression that for a moment at least, his mind was no longer with them. Then the older man blinked and returned his attention to Korra. Taking hold of some papers on his desk, he straightened them.

"This is my advice: We do a civil ceremony here, on Air Bender Island. You'll need witnesses—"

"My brother should be here with Asami any minute," Mako said.

"Good." Tenzin leaned back again, stroking his goatee. "We'll get all the necessary signatures and then I'll send out a release informing the press of your marriage, stating that you had a small ceremony for privacy reasons. No specifics. No dates. There will be an uproar, especially once you confirm your pregnancy." He gestured again for Korra to let him speak. "I'm not saying you need to announce anything today, but we at least need to let Lin and anyone else who works with you directly for the city's safety. They rest is up to you two."

"Thank you, Tenzin," Korra said.

"Have you two discussed living arrangements?" he asked.

"Yes," Mako said. "I was hoping we could stay on the island. This is where people expect to find the Avatar and it will give Korra a bit more privacy."

Tenzin nodded. "I'll have someone move Korra's things into one of the family living quarters then, send your own over when you're ready."

"Tenzin," Korra said. She reached across the desk and placed a hand over Tenzin's. "Thank you for being understanding."

The airbender shrugged. "You are an adult. You've taken responsibility for you actions. I will do anything within reason that will help you pursue the path you think is right."

Korra nodded.

And that was it. That was their wedding. A few words said by Tenzin. A piece of paper with four signatures. Korra's name and his. Asami. Bolin. A big lunch prepared by Pema.

"I know it's nothing compared to what they'd do for you at home," Pema said. "But I had to do something."

"It's perfect," Korra said, her voice cracking. But she was smiling and her hand always found his.

Tonight would be the last night at the apartment with Bolin. Maybe later, they'd find something else in the city, but for now, neither of them could afford to live somewhere with the privacy afforded by Air Temple Island. So tonight they'd go back to pack the few things that he owned and tomorrow, they'd move into their new home.

As he fell asleep that night, curled up with Korra, he wondered he could have been so ignorant the day she walked into the arena with Bolin. Mako was immensely grateful for second chances. He couldn't imagine his future without them.


	8. Seven: Veiled Comments

Korra sighed, twisting in front of the mirror.

"It looks gorgeous, Korra," Asami said for the fifth time.

She was right. The dressmaker that Asami had recommended to Korra a few days ago did a wonderful job. That wasn't why Korra was so nervous.

Apparently, the people of Republic City felt cheated by her quiet wedding to Mako. Only a few hours after Tenzin had sent out the press release, one of Raiko's uniformed lackeys arrived at Air Temple Island to inform them that the president insisted on throwing a part in their honor. He refused to be dissuaded. Landing Korra in a rather uncomfortable situation.

The only fancy dress she owned obviously no longer fit her.

Korra had been fighting tears of frustration when the obvious answer came to her: Asami. Her friend would know someone who could work quickly and, hopefully, be discreet.

So here she was in a blue dress made of the finest fabrics Korra had ever worn. The top was dark blue, sleeveless and high-necked in the way Korra like. Loose and free-flowing, the skirt began just under her bust and did a good job of downplaying her pregnant belly, but it couldn't hide it completely.

_It's just for tonight_, she told herself. _Just get through tonight and tomorrow we would leave for the South Pole. _Everything could wait until after that.

Asami sat forward as the dressmaker finished a few touches on the hem. "How long will this dress fit?" she asked.

"Oh, I put in plenty of room," the woman said. "This style will grow with the belly." She held the skirt out a little, demonstrating. "I find that it's better that way for my clients. No need to keep buying new clothes every few weeks."

Asami nodded her approval. "Well, with all the other clothes we ordered, you should be set, Korra."

Korra offered a small smile and nodded. "Asami, thank you again."

Her friend waved a hand. "It's nothing. I wanted to get you some kind of wedding gift. Though I hope Mako won't feel too left out."

"Mako is just glad I didn't set my entire wardrobe on fire," Korra said. Even her parka was starting to feel constrictive. Most things still stretched over the belly, but the growth of her breasts had the shoulders tight on everything she owned.

"Do you have any plans with you family when you get down to the South Pole?" Asami asked.

Korra shook her head. "I phoned them to tell them we'd gotten married. My mother was a bit shocked, but she's happy for us. I'll tell them about the baby when we get down there." If they didn't figure it out the moment they saw her. "Mako wants to do a traditional ceremony for our first anniversary, like a vow renewal."

"That would be sweet," Asami said.

"There, all finished," the dressmaker said.

"Good, thank you," Asami said, letting the woman out of the room. Then she turned on Korra. "Alright, time for me to attack that hair."

Korra rolled her eyes and sat down at Asami's vanity.

# # #

President Raiko had outdone himself.

Or at least, Raiko's aides had.

Korra had attended some fancy shindigs during her time in Republic City, but the president pulled out all the stops for this. She and Mako received the full red carpet experience from the moment they arrived. The president greeted them almost before Korra got out of the limo Asami had kindly lent them. Naturally, his first action after a handshake was to pull both of them close for a photo op.

She couldn't help feeling like Raiko was mocking her.

Which was why, after all the greeting and congratulations and uncertain looks and overheard gossip, Mako found Korra on the balcony, watching the stars wink into existence.

"You okay?" he asked as he closed the door quietly.

"I'm fine. I just need to get away from all the—that." Sparks crackled under her skin as she gestured behind her, but she managed to keep her temper. The cool night air had helped some too. A breath of fresh air after being in the crowded and stuffy room.

Mako came up behind her, arms going around her waist.

"They all know now," she said. "Or at least they suspect."

"Yeah, I've heard a few people comment when they thought I wasn't listening." He rested his chin on her shoulder. "Is that why you're out here? Hiding doesn't sound much like you."

Korra smiled, but it felt tight. "I thought hiding was probably a better option than setting someone on fire or earthbending them into the basement."

"Does it bother you that much?" he asked. "Because I have a little more leeway when it comes to social situations, since I'm not the Avatar."

"It's not what they're saying about me that bothers me," she whispered. She could take that. It was how she'd always been. Mess with her and she might forgive you, but mess with someone she cared about? You'd know to fear the Avatar then. Except that she was the Avatar, so she couldn't react as vehemently as she wanted. "No one is saying anything about me that's untrue."

"Korra..."

"Well, it is true. Some of it is harsher than anyone deserves, but tell me you wouldn't have done things differently if you could?" Besides, nothing they'd said was as harsh as some of the things she'd told herself.

"Of course, I would," he said.

"Me too." She tried not to think of the list things she would have done differently. It was probably much longer than Mako's, but then she'd screwed things up on much grander scales than Mako had. "But it's done. We can't go back to change anything and..." Korra reached behind her, running her fingers down the line of his jaw. "I am happy with the way things are right now." They'd managed pretty well, all things considered. Really, she wasn't sure why she'd been so nervous all those weeks ago. This was Mako. She should have trusted his actions instead of dwelling on her own insecurities. "Still, if I heard one more high society matron call you a street rat, there was going to be a throw down."

Mako chuckled. "They said that, to your face?"

"No," Korra said. "Apparently, people think that I'm deaf. And stupid. Nobody will outright say anything, of course, but they must expect me not to understand all their veiled comments."

Mako sighed, pressing a kiss to her cheek. "We knew that this would happen. Just wait, something bigger will happen and nobody will care about us anymore."

Korra wasn't sure about them. She was pretty sure that only the end of the world was going to distract the press from turning their lives into some two-cent tabloid story.

And Korra really wanted a break from world-ending drama.

"You know, Bolin used to take so much offense to being called a street rat," Mako said. "He always said there were worse kinds of rats out there—like, spider rats."

Korra shuddered. Those were one of the more unpleasant parts of Republic City. The South Pole might be cold, but at least they didn't have spider rats.

"You cold?" he asked.

"No, just—ugh."

Mako laughed.

"We'd better get back inside before they start gossiping about the torrid activities we're getting up to out here."

"Do we have to?" Korra knew she was whining, but really, she was getting tired of being the city's pet dancing armadillo bear. "We could just slip over the railing and leave, nobody would know any better."

"We have to stay until the dancing starts, at least," Mako said. "Please?"

Korra turned. "You dance?"

Mako looked offended. "I grew up here," he said. "Of course I know how to dance—" He scratched the back of his head. "And Asami might have taught me a thing or two back when we were dating."

"Ah," Korra said. "Fine. One dance and then we tell everyone that we have to leave early in the morning before slipping mysteriously off into the night."

Mako took her hand and they both headed back into the party.

# # #

"Ugh," Mako said, as he slid the door to their bedroom closed behind him. "I feel like I should take a shower."

"Welcome to life as the Avatar," Korra said. "They shower you with nice turns of phrase and expect you not to notice that they're made of shit."

Her husband shook his head and started unbuttoning his jacket.

Korra stepped around their bags and started clearing the packages off of the bed. Just a few boxes and bags that she would have to unpack tomorrow, only to stuff them into her suitcase.

"Let me help you," Mako said. He threw his jacket over the back of a chair.

"I've got," she said around an armful of bags. Still, he took those and gestured for her to get the rest. They were shoved into the closet. Korra was very glad they had lied about leaving early. She'd wanted to take a flying bison straight to the South Pole, but Mako had convinced her to borrow Asami's yacht instead. It would take longer, but be more comfortable for them.

"There," Mako said. "Four hands work faster than two."

"Yeah, sure," Korra said, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him down for a kiss. The returning kiss was brief.

"We should get some sleep," he said. "We've got a lot to do before we leave tomorrow."

Slightly disappointed, but also aware that Mako was right, she turned around. The last week had been crazy, with her presence required all over the city and him putting in extra hours to set things up for his vacation. After tonight, they had the whole week to themselves though. Mostly.

"Help me?" she asked.

Chuckling, he reached out and quickly unzipped her dress.

"Thank you," she said, kissing the corner of his mouth.

Shedding the dress, she reached into the closet for a hanger. When she turned back to find her pajamas, she found Mako staring. He had his nightshirt in one hand, the other reached for her and fell back to his side. His eyes were everywhere, roving all over her body in such a way that she could almost feel it.

Korra waited until he finally met her eyes. No shame. Just wanting. Kicking her shoes off as she stepped forward, reaching for his shirt—he was still clothed and it was completely unfair. Pressing her lips to his, she let her hands slip across his skin. Mako broke the kiss long enough to pull both shirts off in one swift motion.

Kissing again, they tumbled onto the bed. It was the first time they'd both been in it when one of them—usually her—wasn't asleep. Korra sat up, reaching to undo the bindings around her chest. Mako grabbed her hand; he had to shove her off of him to sit up.

"Korra..."

She could see the uncertainty in his eyes. Korra climbed back into his lap.

"It's okay," she said. "I asked Pema. She said it's safe."

"You're sure?"

"I'm sure."

Mako pushed the hair back from her face, cupping his hands around her jaw before bring her back down for another kiss.

* * *

><p><strong>Those of you who are upset at me for the "smut" back in chapter six are probably not happy with me this chapter either. What can I say? I was just so desperately wanting a Makorra makeout session when I wrote that... <strong>

**But on a more serious note, I've been basing a lot of this fic on things that have happened with my friends while they've been pregnant. That little scare they had in chapter five? Took it from a story my friend told me after she spent a weekend on her couch because the baby growing made her so uncomfortable (at this point, it was her second child, so the freak out that Korra had was all me). Thought I'd explain that since I've been seeing a few comments. **

**I'm trying as best I can to incorporate what we've seen to so far in the show (at the time I'm writing this we just got past Remembrances) and build on that. I am 100% positive that Bryke will be taking things in a slightly different direction (meaning that this story has 0% of any of the events happening, not meaning that I think Makorra won't happen-still do). But it's been fun anyways. **

**As always, reviews are welcome. Even the awkward ones. Those make me laugh.**


	9. Eight: Something Special

Mako groaned and rolled over, reaching for Korra.

She wasn't there.

Pushing up onto his elbows, Mako blinked sleepily around the room. It was empty except for him. He'd gotten used to being the first one up, departing at some indecent hour with just a sleepy kiss to get him through the day. And another half-awake greeting as he slid into bed next to her late in the night. This was new

Sunlight poured across the bed, keeping him comfortably warm. Well, he supposed it really didn't matter when they left, considering that Asami's yacht was at their disposal.

And the late night last night had definitely been worth it.

Mako got up, stopping when he remembered that no, he did not need his uniform. He wasn't going to work today. He had a whole week to enjoy with his wife.

Mako grinned. Wife. Just thinking of the word made his insides melt. Korra was his wife. They were married.

If he never got tired of that feeling it would be too soon.

Sappy grin still on his face, Mako shrugged into his casual clothing and went looking for Korra.

He heard her laughter ringing across the courtyard and headed to the main building, where, as expected, he found Korra sitting around the table with Tenzin's family. Ikki and Meelo moved a few cushions over when they saw Mako, though Jinora stayed in her spot next to Korra, leaning over Korra's shoulder as she read what ever had Korra laughing.

"Good morning," he said nodding at everyone. He sat next to Korra, leaning in for a quick kiss, despite Meelo's noises of disgust.

Korra gave him a goofy grin. "Good morning to you."

"How long have you been up?" he asked.

Korra shrugged. "Since way too early," she said, laying a hand on her stomach. "This one had me starving before the sun was up."

They really were going to have to start talking about names soon, Mako realized as he took a bowl of cooked grains and fruit from Pema. "You should have gotten me up."

"You don't get many chances to sleep in," Korra said, in her hand she held a newspapers. One of the less reliable ones. She was in a rather good mood for having one of those in her hand.

Mako raised an eyebrow. "Been doing some light reading?"

A twinkle in her eye, Korra held the paper up for him to see. Just as he'd suspected, their picture occupied a spot on the front page. The photographer had caught a very intimate moment form last night. They stood very close. Her hands rested on his shoulders, his arms are around her waist—it was probably taken while they danced last night. If the picture had been of total strangers, Mako wouldn't have been able to miss the way they were looking at each other.

Mako couldn't help smiling. "Well, at least they got my good side."

"You don't have any bad sides," Korra said, pulling the paper down to shake her head at him.

"I meant you." Mako winked.

"Ugh," Meelo said. "Grown-ups are gross." He looked to his sisters, growling in disgust at the dreamy expressions on both their faces.

"Just look at that title," Korra said. "'The Avatar's Love Lights Up Republic City'." She pushed his breakfast aside as she spread the paper out on the table. "I asked Asami to keep an eye out this morning," she explained. "Just to see what the fallout from last night would be. She brought this with a few others. It is a rather good picture," she said, tilting her head to study it.

Mako retrieved his bowl. "Very good picture."

"Do you think if I asked nicely, they'd let me get a copy." She glanced at him sidelong. "We could frame it."

"By ask nicely, you mean with your words, right?"

"Of course," she said. "This is the most ridiculous thing I've ever read, but whoever wrote it absolutely loves us."

Mako popped a spoonful of the grain in his mouth as he glanced through the story.

"'Hoping to spare Republic City the expense of a lavish wedding, the Avatar and her beau opted for a small, civil ceremony with only family and friends. An exact date has not been announced, but circumstances point to it occuring several weeks ago. 'We are very happy for them,' a family friend says. 'We've been rooting for them since day one. I don't think anyone who's seen them together can deny that they were meant for each other.' After last night's heart-warming displays of affection, it would certainly seem that way and...'" Mako cut off, scanning a little further down the page. "Spirits, Korra, did you threaten the writer?"

She pouted. "Since when do I threaten the press?"

"Well, there was that one time..." Ikki cut off as Korra glared at her.

"I love how I'm your unnamed beau," Mako said. "Such a fancy word."

"I know, right?" Korra giggled.

He kept reading. "I think I might have some competition."

"I love how they won't outright say that I'm pregnant, but they keep hinting at it like they're so clever." Korra rolled her eyes, picking at a seam in the wood with her nail. "You'd have to be blind not to notice after last night. Wt least we don't have to worry about them raking us over the coals right now."

"See? You've won them over."

Korra folded the paper, making sure that the picture of them was on top. Her finger traced the line of his profile. "I think, maybe, you won them over. How can you not fall for a couple when the guy looks at her like that?"

"She looks like she thinks he's something pretty special too."

"He is something pretty special."

"Seriously? We are eating here!" Meelo threw his hands in the air and left the breakfast table, while his sisters sighed.

* * *

><p><strong>Bit of a short chappie, but I'm trying to keep the narrators in a pattern of sorts and I had to do this little moment with Mako and Korra and that newspaper. If I'd really been on my game, I would have seen if there was some meta writer or someone who'd want to dream up a truly trashy article similar to what I wrote, alas, you get my sad attempt. Ah well...<strong>

**We're winding down, if you couldn't tell. Just a few more chapters and then, finito. I've already got it all down, I just need to read through and polish it up a bit. I think ya'll will really like the way this ends. *grins***

**Reviews are appreciated.**


	10. Nine: Making Promises

Waking up in a strange room surprised Korra. Odd how quickly she had gotten used to falling asleep and waking up in the same place when the opposite had been so hard to acclimate to. The last week or so had really driven that contrast ii, moving to new quarters on Air Temple Island and now being on Asami's yacht.

Despite Mako's presence, it felt nerve-wracking.

Korra took a deep breath, reminding herself that she was okay. It was still nighttime. She was in a stateroom on Asami's yacht. They were on their way to the South Pole. Closing her eyes, she tuned in with the water all around them. A calm night then There was no reason for her to feel nervous, all she had to do was let herself slip back to sleep.

But she had to pee.

Really badly.

She knew, of course, that the bathroom was just a few steps away. All she had to do was forsake the warmth of blankets and husband for a few minutes and the discomfort would be gone. However, she also knew that if she got up any chance she had of falling back asleep easily would be gone. Finally, she had to surrender to biology. Wincing as her feet hit the cold floor, Korra got up and practically ran to the bathroom.

That done, Korra carefully slid back under the covers. Mako, she had learned, was a light sleeper. It made sense. Just another way all those years on the street had left their mark. Korra was inching closer to him, trying to snuggle close again without waking him up, when Mako sat up, hands grasping at something she couldn't see. Korra jumped.

"No. Korra!"

"What?" she asked.

Mako whipped his head around, staring at her with clouded eyes. He blinked a few times. "Korra?"

"I'm right here." Hesitantly she touched his shoulder.

Mako's gaze shifted to her hand, staring at it uncomprehendingly. He breathed in, sharply. Tears glistened in his eyes. He unclenched his hands from the bedding, bringing one shaking hand up to brush through her hair before he pulled her close. It took only a moment for Korra to realize what his nightmare had been about.

"You're safe," he whispered.

"Of course I'm okay," she mumbled into his chest. "You never told me," she said. He should have told her. In the last week, she'd woken him three times with her own nightmares. Part of her was starting to think the dreams were never going to really leave her.

"It's been—a long time since I had one," he said. His voice was scratchy, like sandpaper being dragged over a block of wood. He was still trembling.

Korra wrapped her arms around him, pulling him back down with her. He pressed his cheek to her collarbone. Running her fingers through his hair, she waited for the shaking to stop. She kissed his forehead, like he did when the dreams woke her, whispering quietly. Mostly nonsense.

"Sorry," Mako sniffled, wiping his eyes with a corner of the blanket.

"No. It's fine," she said. "Of course something like that effects you. I just wish you'd told me." She wanted to tell him he never had to worry about something like that happening again. She wanted to believe that she would never have to worry about her life being threatened ever again, but she was the Avatar. Walking away from any fight was never guaranteed.

"Mako…" Korra bit her lip. Maybe now wasn't the best time to bring this up. Maybe never was the best time to bring it up.

"What?" He rolled away from her, propping his head on one hand.

Korra smiled at him and swallowed the question. "I love you."

"I love you too," he said, leaning in to kiss her. "And that's how I know there's something on your mind. What is it?" He took her hand, pressing the fingertips to his lips before sliding his fingers between hers. Their intertwined hands rest on her belly.

Such a little thing, she thinks. It seems like such a small thing, and yet, there was so much more to it.

"If anything ever happened to me," she said. Korra couldn't look at him, but she felt him tense. "Not that I'm planning anything ever happening," she said. Her free hand came to brush over the spaces between his knuckles. "I'm going to do everything in my power to have a long life with you and watch our daughter grow up and—and meet our grandchildren." Korra swallowed. "But even with all that, you could still out live me and…" Korra leaned back into the pillow, sighing as she met his eyes.

He wasn't glowering, as she thought he would be. The eyebrows weren't not doing much of anything at the moment. Instead, he waited patiently for her to finish, a strained, but neutral expression on his face. Maybe he already knew what she wanted to ask.

"If you do live long enough to meet the next Avatar…"

"You want me to teach him or her?" Mako said. "I'm not sure…Korra, I'm not sure if I could do that. I mean, maybe…"

Korra shook her head. "That's not it. Don't let them shut her away. If there is one thing I wish had been different for me, I wish had stayed with my parents. I wish I'd been given the chance to be a normal kid once in a while and have friends my own age." She sighed. "All I did for seventeen years was train. It was fun, but looking back that's a lot to put on a kid. And Avatar Aang? They dumped the weight of the world dumped on his shoulders when he was twelve and I think—I think it killed him…in the end that's what I think did it."

"I don't understand how you think we could change that."

"You and Bolin…" She ran her fingers down his cheek, following the curve to his chin, stubble dragging against her callouses. Korra smiled softly. "Even Asami—Meeting all of you changed my whole life. You're the people who know me best. I trust you to fight for the next Avatar. If you hang around that long, try to put a little fun is his or her life."

He watched her with dark eyes for a very long time. "Promise me something."

"Is it a promise I can keep?"

Mako smiled. "You'll try. That's enough," he said. His thumb rubbed back and forth across the back of her hand. "Promise me that we'll make it to at least eighty and end up crotchety old grandparents who constantly scandalize their poor children."

"Mako…"

"Just promise," he said. "Please."

"I promise," she whispered.

"Then I promise too." Mako pulled her closer, combing his fingers through her hair. "And I promise that if by some miracle I manage to survive you, I'll give all those young White Lotus whipper-snappers what for and make sure they know how to properly raise the Avatar."

"You'll know everything about being the Avatar by then," she said. "Just like Katara. Thank you."

"I'm still hoping for the best case scenario," he said.

"And that is?"

"We make it to a hundred and fifteen and pass away together in our sleep."

"You are so hopelessly romantic," she said, kissing him. "I like it."

She snuggled closer and waited for sleep to come again. And if Mako held her a little bit tighter than normal, she didn't complain. Korra was holding him just as tightly.

Maybe if she held on tightly enough, they would get the future they both wanted so badly.

* * *

><p><strong>I know the show has spent a lot of time dealing with how things with Zaheer affected Korra, but I've also always been interested in how they affected Mako. Just knowing his history, I feel like being unable to protect someone he cares about as much as he cared about Korra would be enough to really screw him up mentally. I also think he'd be really good about hiding it. Although I don't think there's going to be time in the show to show to get into this (Curse you Nick, they should have had at least three full seasons, not these half season things you've given them). <strong>

**But here you are. Just a few more chapters to go.**


	11. Ten: A Parent's Choices

If it hadn't of been for Naga, Mako was pretty sure he'd never have convinced Korra to take the yacht. She thought an air bison would be faster. He pointed out that Naga could not travel on an air bison and she hated being left behind. A tad bit reluctantly, Korra had ceded the point. It had been a good call on his part. The bathroom breaks alone would have doubled their travel time.

"Here, let me help you," Mako said, jumping down from the polar bear dog before Korra could dismount.

"I can do it. I'm not even that big yet."

"Practice then," Mako replied, winking at her.

Korra rolled her eyes, but let him help her down anyways.

"Ugh, that ride feels like it's twice as long," she complained, rubbing her butt and twisting to stretch her back. She opened her mouth to say something else, but stopped, looking over Naga's back at her parent's home. "Would you—would you mind if I told them on my own?"

Mako blinked. "Um, I guess not…"

She sighed. "It's just, I feel like this is something I need to do on my own."

"You're worried your dad is going to kill me on the spot, aren't you?"

"He'd have to get through me first," she said, smiling at him. She tilted her face up, asking for a kiss, which Mako willingly gave.

"Korra!"

Korra turned at the sound of her mother's voice, her smile lighting up her whole face.

"I'll get the bags," Mako said. "Take your time."

"Wish me luck." With that, Korra took off, running to her parent's open arms.

He was leading Naga back towards the stable when Senna called out to him, "Mako, don't just stand there. Come inside."

"Someone has to take care of Naga," he said. "You guys catch up; I'll be in in just a minute."

Korra took her mother by the shoulders, pulling her inside, talking and laughing the whole time. Something tightened in Mako's chest, he was pretty sure it was his lungs and he had a feeling it wasn't because of the cold air. Korra loved Republic City, he knew that, but there was something about the South Pole that made her seem lighter here.

Naga followed him, snuffling for a treat, which Mako gladly gave her once the saddle was off and she settled in.

How long it would take Korra to explain everything? Should he wait a few more minutes? Was Tonraq already on his way to take Mako's head off? No, Korra wouldn't let that happen. He knew where she got her hardheadedness from. That much was clear in his few interactions with the Water Tribe chief.

Shoving his hands in his pockets, Mako trudged through the snow and let himself in the house.

No yelling. That was a good sign, right?

He could hear Senna's soft voice at the back of the house, talking. Heavy footsteps echoed down the hallway. Tonraq.

The way he sized up Mako was nerve-wracking. Far too calm for his tastes. Nothing that hinted at what the older man was thinking. Then Tonraq smiled and crossed to Mako, his hand extended.

"Welcome to the family," he said, taking Mako's hand and shaking it vigorously. When he let go, Mako nearly checked to see if the shoulder was dislocated.

"Uh, thank you, sir."

"Just Tonraq, Mako. Family means no titles." His grin widened as he took in Mako's still dubious expression. "Don't worry, my daughter is a grown adult. She's made her own choices for years. Some of them aren't easy to accept, but I've learned that I must." The look on Tonraq's face clearly showed that he was talking not of the baby, but of other darker things. Mako had a pretty good idea what haunted Tonraq's thoughts.

The waterbender glanced over his shoulder. "They started talking about…girl stuff, so I thought it might be best if I excused myself. No daughter wants her dad around for that.

Tonraq gestured to a chair, settling onto the couch as he did so. Mako obliged, his butt on the very edge of the seat. Not wanting to seem too uncomfortable, he leaned his elbows against his knees, clasping his hands together. All that time with Wu had taught him a few useful habits when it came to faking confidence.

"Did Korra tell you we're having a girl?" Mako asked.

Tonraq nodded. "She did mention it." His eyes crinkled as he smiled. Korra might look like her mom, Mako realized, but she had her dad's smile. "I'm sure you'll do fine. That brother of yours didn't turn out too badly."

Mako swallowed. He hoped Tonraq was right. Raising Bolin had been an ordeal even without the circumstances they'd grown-up in. Knowing that his daughter wouldn't have to worry about where she slept or what she would eat, or who would look after her if anything ever happened to him and Korra should have put him at ease.

He still felt nervous.

"Children are scary things. Even when they don't turn out to be the Avatar," Tonraq said, eyes scanning Mako's face. "You'll never be able to do everything right. You just have to do the best you can." His face clouded over. His expression growing harder than the walls of Ba Sing Se. Sighing, he said, "We fought to keep her with us, you know."

It took a minute for Mako to figure out what Tonraq was talking about.

"The White Lotus, as soon as they found out she was the Avatar, they wanted to whisk her away and start her training. She was four," he said. "We refused and thankfully, Katara backed us. We were waterbenders. We were more than adequate teachers. The last thing we wanted was to see her locked up in that compound." He grinned again. "You should have seen Senna fight for Korra. She gets her stubbornness and her temper from me, but that gleam—that complete confidence when she has something to fight for? That's all Senna.

"Then the Red Lotus came," he said. Tonraq leaned forward, mirroring Mako. "After that, all we wanted was to know she would grow up. Even if it wasn't with us." He sighed again, passing a hand over his eyes. "I don't think I'll ever be sure that was the right decision. There will always be the thought chance that she could have stayed with us without further incident, but for Senna and I, as much as we wanted her to have a normal childhood—well, she is the Avatar. There is nothing about her that's normal."

Mako nodded. Though, he didn't think anything about Korra would have been normal, even if she wasn't the Avatar.

"Don't worry if you don't have all the answers," Tonraq said. "Being a parent, that's something you have to figure out as you go. And I am here, if you ever want to ask for advice."

"Thank you, si—Tonraq," Mako said, reaching for the man's hand. "You don't know how much that means to me."

The waterbender nodded, then stood as both their wives entered the room.

* * *

><p><strong>Really. Really wanted this moment with Tonraq. I can see this version of Mako being super nervous about whether or not he'll be a good dad, because he never really had a dad. So, there you go.<strong>

**One chapter left and then the epilogue. I'm hoping to get them up today and tomorrow, since this is one of my NaNo projects. Enjoy! =D**


	12. Eleven: Midnight Questions

"Where are you going?" Mako mumbled as Korra slipped on her parka. He lifted his head to watch her patter across the room to her boots, hair falling across his eyes.

Korra was tempted to crawl back into bed and dishevel that hair some more, but she was already dressed and the moon was calling her. Leaning over, she kissed his cheek.

"Full moon," she said. "I'll be back in a little bit."

Mako pushed the covers back, "I'll go with you."

"Go back to bed," she said, shoving him playfully. He hit the mattress with a soft thump. "You're cranky when you don't get enough sleep."

"Be careful," he said, pulling her close again and kissing her lightly. "And I'm not nearly as cranky as you get."

"Which is why you need your sleep," she replied. "Or you won't be able to put up with cranky me."

He mumbled something as he buried his head back in the pillow. By the time she closed their bedroom door, he was snoring again.

Somehow, Korra had forgotten how cold the South Pole could be in the middle of the night. Shivering a little, she trekked through the snow, heading out, away from the house. Here, in her home, in the very place she'd first learned to waterbend, the moon infused her with energy. When she woke tonight, she knew turning over and going back to sleep would prove impossibke.

Korra found that she wasn't alone.

A small, slightly squat figuring was moving through waterbending forms with ease and grace that belied her age. Without even having to ask, Korra fell into step with her old master, matching her flawlessly. Katara didn't speak, only smiled in acknowledgement and continued on. Korra felt like a child again, felt the cares of the last several months fall away. Time lost its meaning as the two moved, shaping the water around them, passing it between them, dancing together as they always had.

At last, Katara brought them to a resting stance and the exercise was over.

A smile spread across her wrinkled face. "I hear I'm to congratulate you twice over."

Korra blushed a little. Word had gotten around fast in the last two days. "Yes."

The older woman held her hand out, eyebrows raised. Korra nodded. One step forward and Katara's hand was on Korra's stomach, a look of concentration on the older waterbender's face.

"Hmm. A strong girl," she said. "This one will give you trouble I wager. Shall I take a guess what kind of bender she will be?"

Korra laughed. She knew that guessing what kind of bender a baby would turn out to be was an inexact science, a healer could be right as often as they were wrong. Though she knew Katara's record was probably a little more sure.

"No," Korra said. "It won't matter either way."

"Good answer," she said. "Aang never asked me, you know. It probably ate him up with impatience, but he preferred to wait—for many reasons."

"I can't imagine."

Katara laughed. Deftly, she bent a bench of ice and sat, patting the bench. "Oh, maybe not now, but I think you'll know soon enough. I remember what it was like, having the eyes of the world on me, prying into something that should have been just between me and my husband." She shook her head. "The pressure of entire nations waiting to see if I would produce the next airbender was enormous. Aang was like you though, he just cared that they would be healthy. I never understood how he could be so at peace about it. I don't think I would have been the same way."

"It's probably an airbender thing," Korra said, thinking of Tenzin and Pema and even Jinora, who seemed so grown-up, even at fourteen. Even Meelo was calmer now, but only by a little. Korra hoped it was because of their training and not because of the things they had seen.

"Yes, probably."

"You don't think we're too young for all of this?" Korra asked, fiddling with her sleeves.

Her mentor laughed so hard, Korra though she might fall over.

"Excuse me, Korra," she said, wiping a tear from her eye. "But I'm hardly the person to ask about that. Aang was only a year younger than you when we got married. I was barely a year oldes And by then, we'd already been together for so long." She tilted her face up to the stars. The moonlight fell on it, erasing lines rather than highlighting them as Korra would have expected. "We were too young then, I suppose. A fifteen-year-old should not know the answer to such a permanent decision, but that was the time I'd lived through. By the end of the war, I'd already lost Aang once, though I managed to bring him back. I remember being so scared as the comet neared. And so certain that if anything happened to him, I wouldn't know how to go on."

The old woman smirked. "I would have of course. If that had been the end of us, I would have been heartbroken, but it wouldn't have been long before I picked myself up and started to move on. If woman of sixty-eight can do it, I have no doubt a young thing like I was could have." She winked at Korra. "I just didn't have the wisdom to see that then. Everything is so black and white when you are young."

Korra nodded, remembering when she'd first come to Republic City. Even the Avatar could fall into the trap of measuring things in extremes.

"I don't know how to tell everyone—I mean, now that you know, I think all the important people know. But what about the rest of the world?"

"Posh," Katara said, she waved a hand dismissively. "Forget about them. Aang and I never made any official announcements. We just let people figure it out as things progressed. Just because they think they are privy to every detail of your life, does not mean that they are. Unless an issue arises, I would let them notice when they notice. Don't make a show of it, but don't hide either."

Korra nodded.

"Thank you, Master Katara," Korra said, leaning over to hug her old teacher. "Do you want me to walk home with you?"

Katara shook her head. "I think I'll sit out here a while longer."

Korra started crunching away, but then she turned back.

"Katara, there is one other question," she said.

# # #

When she got back to their room, Mako was snoring softly. Korra undressed quickly, sliding under the covers and right next to him before the cold could work its way under her skin. The bed was blissfully warm.

She, however, was not.

Mako jerked awake. "Wha—Korra, your feet are freezing."

She giggled. "Come closer, and they won't be for long."

Her husband sighed and let her curl into him. He shivered, but didn't say anything, his skin burning a little hotter than normal as he helped her warm up.

"You're nose feels like an icicle," he said. "And why am I warming you up? You're a firebender, you don't need me."

"But I like it better when you do it," she said.

"How long were you out there?" he mumbled.

"A couple of hours, maybe? I ran into Katara. We talked."

Mako pulled back to look at her. "About?"

"Mostly about the baby. I asked her a few questions, she gave me some advice," Korra yawned, stretching so that she was taking up every inch of Mako's length she could reach. "Speaking of which, in the morning I think we should talk about names."

"Okay," Mako said, his voice a little slurred.

Korra smiled and let herself drift off with him.

* * *

><p><strong>This chapter was interesting to write. I knew I wanted to have a conversation between Korra and Katara, both because Katara probably knows all of the pressure that is on Korra's shoulders. In case you hadn't noticed, I'm not very supportive of how the media tears into the lives of celebrities and acts like their lives are everyone's business. I really feel like this is something that would put a huge strain on everything Korra does. Her every decision is in the public eye. So obviously, that got explored.<strong>

**Part of this conversation is based on events in an earlier fic I wrote called The Avatar's Bargain (like, so early that this was when we still though Kya was the oldest), in which I spend a little bit of time exploring Aang's feelings regarding whether or not there would be more airbenders. It's horribly out of date (I haven't had the time to rewrite it yet), but you can check that out if your in the mood for angsty Kataang fluff.**

**Finally, I don't get into here, but I actually have a theory that in the end, the shortness of Aang's life is actually attributed to the pressures of being the Avatar and not to his time in the iceberg. I can understand how the people of Korra's time might attribute it to that, but the more I look at canon and think about what Aang ended up going through as the Avatar, the more I think this is actually what happened. I think I had Korra mention it in the last chapter, but it just didn't fit in with Katara's narrative here. I chose to focus on how she felt like her life would end when Aang died and then have the reflections about that not being true. They'd been together for so long when Aang died, that I think it would be totally understandable for Katara to feel like she couldn't go on. Obviously she did or the narrative of the show would be very different.**

**Anyways, those are my thoughts. I'll try to get the final chapter up tomorrow. Enjoy!**


	13. Epilogue: All Smiles

"Hold still, Kat," Korra told the stocky, squirming mass that was her four-year-old daughter. A small hand grabbed the collar of the nightgown and pulled it down, winning smile peeking through the opening.

"I wanna go back in," the girl said, pointing at the tub that Korra just dragged her out of.

"No more water time tonight," Korra said. "It's time for bed."

Kat looked up at her mother, obviously contemplating whether a pouty lip or tears would work better on her mother. Korra took advantage of the brief stillness to slip the dress over her daughter's head.

"I'll tell you what," she said. "Mommy has tomorrow off. I bet we can convince Daddy to go swimming with us. But first, you have to go to bed."

That was all it took. Kat's amber eyes lit up. She bounced on her toes, clapping her hands together under the nightgown. Korra couldn't help smile as she tried to wrestle the child's arms through the sleeves. Kat's love of water was a little ironic after today's events.

Korra had to grab Kat to keep her from leaping off the bathroom counter as they heard the front door open and shut.

"Daddy!" Kat called. Suddenly, she was much more interested in getting her nightgown on. Quickly, she slipped her remaining hand through the sleeve and gave Korra an exasperated look, as if it was her mother's fault that getting dressed was taking so long. Korra put her down, following as her daughter barreled down the hallway and into their living room.

Mako swung Kat up into his arms as Korra entered the room.

"And how is my little Kitty Kat tonight?" he asked. "Aren't you supposed to be in bed? "

"I let her play in the tub a little longer tonight," Korra said, leaning in for a quick kiss.

"Daddy," Kat said, placing a chubby hand on either side of his face. "Daddy, Mommy says we can swim tomorrow. Can we? Can we?"

"Well, if Mommy says we're going swimming, then I guess we're going swimming."

Kat giggled delightedly, clapping both her hands together. Mako kissed her temple and then put her down so he could take of his jacket. The four-year-old tugged on Korra's pants, gesturing for Korra to bend down. Pretty sure she knew what Kat would ask, she crouched down to her daughter's level.

Kat cupped her hands to Korra's ear and failed to whisper, "Can I show Daddy?"

Korra smiled. "Yes, you can show Daddy."

Mako paused, raising an eyebrow. His eyes met Korra's first and she knew what he was expecting, but he didn't say anything as Kat took a deep breath and held her hand out.

A small flame appeared in her little hand. Both of Mako's eyebrows shot up.

"Guess who's a firebender?" Korra said, smiling up at him.

"Let me see that," he said. Mako knelt in front of Kat, cupping her hand in his big ones. "That's very good. I bet you worked really hard with Mommy today."

Kat nodded vigorously. Scrunching her mouth, she concentrated on the flame and it slowly died down until she put it out by closing her fingers around it.

Korra ruffled her daughter's hair. "Okay. You showed him, now what time is it?"

Kat bit her lip, glancing between her parents. "Bedtime?"

Korra nodded.

"Can—" Kat focused on Mako, fidgeting with both hands clasped behind her. "Can Mommy tuck me in tonight?"

Mako laughed. "Of course she can." He scooped her up, kissing her feathery, brown hair. "Good job with that fire," he said. "I'll teach you some more stuff tomorrow, okay?"

"Before swimming?"

"Yes. Before swimming," he said.

"Okay! Night, Daddy." She kissed his cheek, making a face at the scruffy stubble.

Korra reclaimed the little girl from her father. Kat sighed and put her arms around her mother's neck. It was way past her bedtime, but her daughter had been so excited to show Mako the firebending trick they'd practiced.

Grabbing a book from Kat's little bookshelf, Korra helped her daughter clamber beneath the covers and settled in next to her. Reading was a bedtime ritual that Korra didn't get to participate in nearly as often as she wanted. It didn't take long for the child to fall asleep. Kat was a bundle of energy as long as she could keep moving, but if you could get her to sit still she usually nodded off right away. It was the sitting still that was the challenging part. Hence the bedtime stories.

Tucking the blankets around Kat's small shoulders, Korra kissed her forehead and turned off the light.

Mako was on the couch, already changed out of his work clothes, looking exhausted.

"Looks like I owe you ten yuans," he said with a tired smile as Korra plonked down next to him. He lifted his arm, letting Korra lean in against him.

"Yes you do," she said.

"Is everything okay?" he asked.

"Yes," Korra said. "Why wouldn't it be?"

"I just thought I was picking Kat up this week."

Korra laughed. "Yes, well, your daughter might have set Rohan's hair on fire at lunchtime."

"What?!"

"She just singed him a little. He was teasing her, from what Pema told me."

"Sounds like something her mother would do." He tried to pull a serious face, but he couldn't hide the grin.

"So, when they called me, I told them I'd come and get her. I just had boring meetings today, nothing they actually needed me for. You know how they are, they think having me there makes it super-official." She elbowed him. "Besides, turns out it was a good thing, since you had to work late."

Mako grimaced. "Yeah, well, I would have been off on time if the chief hadn't found out I didn't need to pick Kat up. How'd her first less go?"

"Pretty well." Sighing, Korra shifted, stretching out a little more. "I would have waited for you before I started teaching her, but I was afraid she'd burn down the apartment if I didn't let her try something."

"Ye of little faith."

"I nearly did. Had a good blaze burning by the time my mom smelled the smoke." Korra covered her face, laughing. "I don't even know how my parents did it."

"Was she disappointed?"

From the time she could comprehend what benders did, Kat had been obsessed with waterbending (once they'd explained that only Korra could bend all four elements, of course), insisting on practicing the forms with Korra and pretending to waterbend constantly. Her unusual (for her age) love of any kind of water was part of the reason Mako had thought she'd be a waterbender like Korra.

"Not really," Korra said. "Not once I reminded her that Mommy was a firebender too."

Mako shook his head. "I was so sure I was right."

"You can't be right all the time, love," Korra said, patting his cheek.

"Easy for you to say when you're the one winning the bet."

"She has your eyes." The eyes were the one feature that their daughter had inherited from Mako. That, and now her bending. "Besides, it's better this way." Korra grinned up at him. "Now we can teach her together."

"There is that," he said, kissing the top of her head. "So you aren't disappointed."

Korra shook her head. "Of course not."

They sat in silence for a little while longer. She was getting hungry and Mako was probably hungry too, but this was the first time she'd gotten to sit down all afternoon. Not counting dinner with Kat, but that had been a short affair. Her daughter hated sitting still.

Her stomach rumbled. Mako laughed.

"Food?"

"Food," she said hopping to her feet.

Mako got up and followed her into the kitchen, rummaging around in their fridge while Korra pulled out a pan and bent some water into it. Taking last night's leftovers from Mako, she set them to steam for a few minutes while he pulled out the plates.

"We're going to have to be careful about using fire around her," Korra said.

"Nah. We just have to teach her to be careful."

"And no fire when we aren't around."

Mako nodded. "Not until she's older." He put his arms around her waist, letting her relax against him. "I'm still betting on waterbender for the next one."

Korra leaned back, biting back her smile. "Next one? Who told you there's going to be a next one?"

"I have my sources." He leaned down to kiss Korra.

"Ooh, Mr. Detective has his sources," she said, pulling away enough to talk, but staying tantalizingly close. "I bet I have better ones."

Mako took a breath, cupping her face in his hands. His eyes were sparking. "Oh really?" he asked, trying to sound cool, but she knew this is what he'd been waiting for all day. "What do your sources say?"

"They say Katara needs to get ready to be a big sister."

Her breath left her in a huff as Mako lifted her off her feet and spun her around. Korra laughed, trying to stay quiet so she didn't wake their daughter. When her feet were back on the ground, she pulled him down for another kiss before he could say anything else. They backed up until Korra was pinned between him and the kitchen cabinets. Not a far distance in their little kitchen.

"When?" he asked breathlessly.

"Late fall, I think," she said.

"We'll need a bigger place."

"Shouldn't be too hard," Korra said. "I know the Avatar. She can probably pull some strings for us."

Mako opened his mouth to say something else, but their dinner started steaming right then. With a sigh, Mako reached for the pan, spooning their dinner onto the plates Korra held out. Kissing his cheek, she took them out to the table.

Neither of them stopped smiling.

* * *

><p><strong>And there you have it. This story has come to it's conclusion...sort of.<strong>

**If you are familiar with any of my other Korra fanfics, I've actually structured it so that it sort of fits with this one. If you ignore the difference in Korra and Mako's ages between this and some of the later stuff I've done. But as far as the age difference between Katara and San (their second kid), that still fits with this story. You are welcome to go check that out if you enjoyed this one. I think it will end up involving a lot of Makorra family moments...**

**Thanks for sticking with me this long. I've really loved working with this fic and I loved delving into the character of a Makorra baby for this chapter. (Seriously, I love this child so much, you would think I'd birthed her myself.)**


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